The Innocent Can Never Last

Poprocks And Coke

Emma's POV

I slept fairly well that night, and when I woke up the next morning, I found that I was feeling very refreshed and exultant. I got to spend the whole day with Billie. I guess I really hadn't realized how much I had missed him until he had come back the night before. I missed seeing him every day. I missed his smile, his laugh, his eyes... I missed holding him in my arms when he cried. More than anything, though, I missed seeing him happy. He was such a lost soul these days, and when I thought about how much faith he stored in me, it scared me to death. I still couldn't understand what Billie saw in me that made him think that I was the one to fix everything. He looked up to me to make his whole life better. But what if I screwed it up big time? What if I hurt him again? No.

Things were going to be different this time. I would never hurt Billie ever again, and neither would anybody else... Not unless they were prepared to deal with me, anyway. If I was lucky enough to have a friend that would place his whole life in my hands, then I would personally make sure that he would never have to deal with anything on his own ever again. With great power comes great responsibility. From now on, I would always be there for Billie, even if I had to follow him to the ends of the earth to look after him. I would do anything for him... Anything. Billie Joe would never have to hurt anymore.

"Wherever you go, you know I'll be there,
If you go far, you know I'll be there,
I'll go anywhere, so I'll see you there..."

Later that morning, when I had finished taking a shower, drying my hair, and applying my make-up, I emerged from the bathroom, and headed into my bedroom to get dressed. I took my time in selecting a pair of army-green capri pants that tied around my knees, with a black cami tank top, and a patched jean jacket to go over it. No sooner had I finished getting dressed than I heard a sharp knock on the front door. Billie. With a slight skip in my step, I bounded across my room, threw on a pair of black flip-flops, grabbed my purse, and then I pranced back into the living room and threw open the front door.

Today, Billie was wearing a pair of tight black Dickies, a black Raiders t-shirt, and a pair of low-cut, dirty Converse. He had a pair of aviator sunglasses perched on his head, and a cute, innocent smile plastered on his face. "Hi, doll," I said.
"Hey," he replied.
I stepped out the front door, locking it behind me, as Billie grinned again and pulled me into a friendly hug. "Are you ready to go?" I asked, after we had pulled apart.
"I've been ready, let's go," Billie said, putting his hand on my elbow and leading me down the front steps. "I was thinking that we could just walk... It's really nice here."
"Sounds great," I answered. "I'll lead the way."
"Alright."
"So... Know any good places to eat?" I asked, as we walked along.
"Nope. I was hoping you did," Billie said, with a grin.

I thought for a second, before saying, "Well, there's a Subway right up the street."
Billie laughed. "Sounds good. I could do with eating some healthy food. Look how fat I am... The guys have been force-feeding me fried chicken for like, three months now," Billie said, lifting his shirt up and sticking his gut out to make it look like he was fat.

I giggled, and said, "Whatever, Bill... You're not fat, you'll never be fat. You just gained back the weight you lost after the accident. You look good."
Billie dropped his shirt, and said, "You really think it looks good?"
"Yeah, I do. You look healthy... You don't look like an Ethiopian anymore. And I really like your hair, and your clothes, for that matter. It's a nice change," I said, with a smile, as the two of us quickly crossed the street and began walking along the sidewalk once more.

"Thanks," Billie said. "I'm really liking your new look, too. You look a lot different. I love your hair... The blue looks great."
"I thank you," I said with a laugh.
Billie bowed slightly. "But you know you've changed a lot more than just looks, right?" he asked.
"Yeah, I know," I said.
"Your personality has changed so much... I almost couldn't believe how well you handled yourself last night when I was being an ass to you," he said.
"Yeah, well, if I'm about to start school to become a doctor, I can't be running around acting like a bumpkin all the time... And I think I'm starting to understand that keeping a cool head will get things done a lot easier than ripping somebody's head off," I said.
Billie laughed. "That's for sure... Tell that to that one kid that you beat up because he bumped into you too hard and made you drop your ice cream cone," he said mockingly.
"Hey!" I shouted. "I thought we agreed to never talk about that again! You know how bad I felt when I found out that he was only eleven!"
"And you were what, sixteen? Ha!" Billie said, with a laugh.
"William Joseph Armstrong, shut your mouth!" I exclaimed, playfully punching Billie in the shoulder.