‹ Prequel: In the End
Status: Hiatus.

Worry Rock

Homecoming

"Home..Home on the not-so-range, but the big California-house, where the antelopes do not-"

"Billie.." I muttered, adjusting my sunglasses, "Please don't screw up that poor song anymore than you just managed to."

Billie Joe chuckled, poking his tongue out.

I sighed, resting my hand on the steering wheel of the small red Jeep Rubicon. Billie Joe sat in the passengers seat, sunglasses shading his eyes from the sun that looked down at us through the topless roof.

"I'm just happy to be back in California..with the nice warm temperature, no snow..yeah..shorts instead of sweaters..it's nice."

I laughed softly, shaking my head as Billie Joe pulled off the hoodie he had been wearing in New York when we had boarded the plane that morning.

"Are we getting the dog?" He asked after a moment, "From Travis?"

Travis.

3 years after meeting the now 38-year old, he had finally moved to Berkely, California. Billie Joe had hated him for the first year or so, and Travis was scared to go near Billie Joe, not wanting him to try to beat him up again.

But they were fine now, and had gotten over their differences.

Sydney had practically fallen in love with the man, as soon as he had begun teaching her how to skateboard.

I pulled into a short driveway, leading to a decently big house, shutting the jeep off.

"I'll go get her," He offered, nodding his head, "Yeah..I'll go."

He pulled himself up with a groan from the position he had been sitting in for the past half hour, nearly falling out of the Jeep as he opened the door. He grunted, pulling on his pair of converse, before closing the door, his body falling against it.

I watched him, my lip curling in amusement.

"Did you manage to get pissed in the past half hour?"

"Shut up.."

"First day on the new feet?"

"Shut up," He muttered, "I've been sitting the same way for a while..don't bother me."

"Really? That's all?"

He grunted in response, before stumbling over to the steps that lead to the house, leaving me to clear some of the luggage in the back of the car so Sydney could sit. I sighed, knowing that more than half the luggage was Billie Joe's, and mine was fit perfectly into a suitcase.

I turned back around, flicking a piece of hair from my face, hearing my cellphone go off to the tune of 'Miss Murder'. I looked at the screen, going to see who was calling, the small screen flashing 'Dumbass' on it.

I snorted, flicking the cellphone open, pressing it to my ear.

"Hello?"

"Your dog tried to eat my cat."

I started laughing, having to cover my mouth to shut myself up.

"Travis, hun, this is a little dog we're talking about! Did you somehow manage to lose our little dog and take on a big one?"

"No. No, I mean..your dog..fuck..it hates my cat..my cat is scared of that little twirp."

"Aren't all cats afraid of dogs?" I asked slowly

"No! And they shouldn't be when they're bigger than the dog it's self!"

I started laughing, stretching out in the front seat.

"Maybe Charlie has some inner power..better watcha' back, Trav..'gonna gitcha'!"

"Shut up.." He muttered, "Don't even play 'bout shit like that.."

I started laughing, looking up and seeing Billie Joe with a talking Sydney walk down the path to the jeep, Sydney's backpack that had her stuff in it over his shoulder, her happily bounding down the steps next to him.

I heard Travis mutter something, before a bunch of barking came from the background, making me start to laugh even more.

"Travis, we didn't ask you to kill Charlie, we asked you to watch him!"

"I am watching your darling little dog, because I know Sydney loves the thing..but hell..you should take this thing to an exorcist."

"Travis!"

He started laughing now, "Okay, Okay, I'm sorry..I take that back..why punish the exorcist person?"

I groaned, resting my head back, "Listen, Travis, we're back in California..so I'll take my dog back soon, okay?"

"Oh thank god..my cat can live freely again."

"You offered to take him."

"Yeah," He mumbled, "Cuz I'm a good friend..and I didn't expect him to try to eat my cat."

I giggled, shaking my head.

"Well, we'll be there soon..so shut up and deal with him.."

Travis sighed, "Fine, fine, fine. I'll see you soon, hun."

I smiled, now nodding, "Bye Trav."

"Byyee."

I hung up the cellphone, tucking it in my pocket before sliding out of the Jeep, enveloping the 13 year old in a hug.

"Hi mom!"

I smiled, taking my arms from around her, pushing my sunglasses to the top of my head.

Billie Joe placed her backpack on the backseat, shifting the seat so that Sydney could climb in back once she got in.

"Oh my god! I was just telling dad that we saw a photo of you two on a website from the other night! I loved your dress."

I smiled sweetly, "Thanks hun."

She nodded her head, playing with the loop to her jeans. She wore a black tanktop and a pare of dark blue jeans with the knees ripped slightly, showing a part of her kneecap. Her hair was tied back messily, brown hair mixed with highlights of natural red and dirty blonde sticking out.

She was a spitting image of us.

"I want dread locks when I'm older," She rambled, pushing her skateboard into the backseat as she climbed in, "Like, Eddie and I were watching T.v, and this lady had some, and I really want like 2 of them. Like Adrienne, dad! Yeah!"

Billie Joe groaned, climbing into the front seat.

"Sydney, you're 13, Adrienne is much older-"

"Yeah, but Eddie and I saw something where she was like..19..and she had dread locks."

He sighed, "Sydney..just..maybe when you're older."

"But I am older! I'm 13! And you even dye your hair, dad! I don't want to dye it! I just want-"

"Sydney, I was in my teens."

"I'm a teenager!"

Billie Joe sighed, pushing his head against the headrest of the seat, looking over at me.

"She's going to make me start smoking again after I've been trying to quit.."

I giggled, turning the Jeep on, poking my tongue out.

"Sydney. I was in my older teens. Around 17."

"Oh...so can I get them when I'm 17?"

The older man groaned, sinking down in the seat.

"Daad?"

Billie Joe waved a hand over the seat, as if telling Sydney to shut up, making her groan like her father had just done.

There was silence in the car for a moment, before Sydney broke it.

"Mom? Where are we going?"

I looked at Sydney through the mirror, before to Billie Joe who was slumped in the seat, his hand pressed to his forehead. I laughed softly, resting a hand on Billie Joe's shoulder, making him smile.

"Uh..to Travis's house, to get the dog."

Sydney's eyes lit up, a grin appearing on her face.

"We're going to his house?! Can I go in?! Please!?"

"Sure, sweetie."

She squeaked excitedly, biting her bottom lip, making Billie Joe roll his eyes, not understand women.

"Girls.." He muttered

I giggled, shaking my head at him, him smiling at me innocently.

Within a few moments, we were pulling into another driveway, this time leading to another beautiful house.

Sydney grinned, trying to show her excitement to see the man she had been slightly crushing on.

I slid out of the Jeep, pulling the front seat upwards so Sydney could climb out, Billie Joe getting comfortable in his seat, not having to get out.

"You're not coming?" I asked him, going over and leaning on his side of the Jeep.

Billie Joe shrugged, "I don't know."

"Is it really that hard of a decision?"

He laughed lightly to himself, running a hand through his disheveled hair, placing his lips against mine.

"I guess I'll come..someone needs to tame that dog."

I giggled, "Travis said it tried to eat his poor cat last night."

Billie Joe snorted, shaking his head, pulling the seatbelt off. He pushed open the door, falling out of the Jeep, throwing his arms around me to keep himself up, instead of falling like before.

"Thanks.." He muttered, straightening himself up, brushing my shirt off, "It's like a new day on my new feet."

I nodded my head slowly, "I've noticed, hun."

He closed the door to the car, falling against it, making me start to laugh as he groaned, "Make me promise you something."

"Okay.."

"I promise I will never decide to drink most of the booze in the hotel, before getting up the next morning to take a 5 fucking hour flight. Cause this is shit. I'm going to throw up any minute..and I can't see..and I can't feel my feet...carry me?"

I laughed once again, pulling him against me, Sydney already up the steps and talking to Travis.

Billie Joe pushed his head into my neck, wrapping his arms around my waist, pushing me against the car.

"I better not get sick," He grunted, "I swear I'll be mad."

I giggled, sliding my hand into his own, pulling him slowly up the steps to Travis's house. Sydney came bounding down the steps, stopping right infront of her father, smiling one of those smiles that she had gotten from Billie, that they both used when they had "good" news.

"Oh my god..you know what Travis told me!?"

"No..what did he tell you?"

"His sister had dread locks when she was 14!"

Billie Joe groaned, "Well, sweetie, I really hate to break it to you..but you're not Travis's sister."

"Dad!" She cried out, giving him a desperate look.

Billie Joe chewed on the side of his lips, rolling his eyes at the 13-year old, waving his hand infront of her face.

"Daad!"

"Sydney..go away..."

"I won't ask for anything ever again! Seriously! I really want to do something to my hair, and I really like dread locks..they look cool..like..really cool..and this girl in my grade has them-"

"Ask her if she could cut them off and donate them to you, then."

Sydney's mouth dropped open, her eyes widening.

"Eww! Dad! That's discusting!! Eww! Oh my god..how can you even say that?!"

Billie Joe looked at me helplessly, grabbing onto my wrist and pulling me back.

"Why don't you ask mom?"

Sydney sighed, rolling her eyes, shifting her weight to one side and crossing her arms, "Because, dad, mom usually says yes..and then she tells me to ask you. So I figure, I go and ask you, and if you were a nice dad-"

"That's where you fail." Billie Joe mumbled, interrupting her, "I'm not a nice dad. I'm a mean dad. I'd beat you every day if I could. Hell, I use to drop you on your head just to see how much damage it would cause."

Sydney watcher her father, an annoyed look on her face. Billie Joe looked back at her, letting go of my wrist, and mirroring her move, acting like her. He rolled his eyes, throwing his head back, making the annoyed "Ugh." sound, making her groan, and walk back up the steps.

"Mom..can you talk to him? Please? I'll never ask for anything ever again. Like..ever."

"Hun..you said that when you asked for a cellphone."

She nodded her head vigorously, "Yeah, yeah, I know. But think about it..for like..5 months after I got my cellphone, I was really quite."

"You asked for a ringtone every time a new song came out."

"Yeah..well..MOM! I can't ask for ringtones in my hair!"

I looked at Sydney, quirking an eyebrow, "That'd be..odd.."

I nodded my head slowly, "Yes..yes it would."

We both giggled, before stumbling up to Travis's door to claim the dog, letting Billie Joe try to help himself from getting sick.

*

Travis was holding the small dog when we got there.

The small thing was sound asleep in his arms, and as he told me, he would have thrown his arms around me if it weren't for the small animal.

"How was your trip?" He asked, inviting us inside.

I smiled softly, "It was good. Billie Joe hated this morning."

Travis laughed, "Why?"

"He was out of it last night," I smirked, Travis chuckling to himself, "And then we had to get up at like..4 this morning..so he's got jetlag, and he only got like 4 hours of sleep, because he stayed up last night calling room service so many times they eventually stopped answering for everyone."

He started laughing, handing the small dog over to me after a moment.

"For trying to eat your cat..you two seem like you're getting along." I said, nodding my head

Travis smiled sheepishly, bowing his head and sticking his hands in his pockets, "Yeah..well..you know..the little guy grew on me.."

I snorted, shaking my head at him.

"It took you 5 days to finally get along with the dog?"

"4 and a half.."

Sydney giggled, making Travis smile.

His smile had never changed.

Travis, for the most part, had never changed.

He'd grown older, moved out of Florida and into California, in which Billie Joe hated at first, but slowly got use to once he learned he'd have to.

Of course it had caused a fight at first, but he ended up apologizing like a fool. He had actually come to Travis's house to apologize. Travis was slightly scared of Billie Joe, and did his best not to be around him at first, not wanting to get punched again. And I couldn't blame him.

But over the years Billie Joe's bark had become much worse than his bite...and I'm not sure if that was a good thing.

He could be a nasty son-of-a-gun at times, and it caused nasty fights where he ended up walking out for a day, staying with Mike or Tre and Rachel leaving Sydney and I home.

But sooner or late he'd show up at home, looking like a complete mess, probably drunk as hell, and apologizing, babbling like a moron as he did. I'd just stare at him, before letting him inside the house, him throwing his arms around me, the empty bottle of tequila he would be nursing falling to the ground, his head burying it's self in my neck where I'd have to reassure that everything was fine, and I wasn't mad at him any longer.

He was a very emotional person, I've grown to learn.

I told him that once, and he shrugged and told me he should have been born a girl, because, according to him, he had dressed in drag before, had the perfect voice for a girl, and wore more makeup than most girls he knew at a point in time.

"Maybe we should leave him over here longer so you could bond more," I said, nodding my head slowly, "God knows Billie get's annoyed with the dog, so he wouldn't miss it."

Travis laughed, "Nah. That's okay, I'll give Billie Joe some time to bond with it."

I smiled to myself, "If it weren't for Sydney he'd have the thing locked up in a cage, I swear, and that's only because he wouldn't have the heart to put it in the pound. He had to kill a rat once, a long time ago, he told me, and it was one of the hardest things he'd done."

Travis smiled sympathetically, handing the small dog to Sydney who happily cuddled the dog against her, being an animal lover.

"My older sister," Travis mumbled, "When I was younger..she got really pissed off at me..and stepped on my hamster. I cried for days."

My mouth dropped open, "She stepped on your hamster?!"

He nodded, "Squished the poor thing.."

Sydney winced, "Ew.."

"Yeah..poor little hamster.."

"Didn't you try to get her back?" I asked, resting a hand on my hip, "I mean, no offence hun, but I've known you for years."

He smirked, looking down, "I shoved worms in her pillow cases. I use to love worms. So I went and dug some up, and put them in her pillow cases when she slept."

Sydney's eyes went wide, "Oh my god..oh my god..EW!"

Travis snorted, grinning like a fool, "It taught her a lesson though.."

"That's disgusting.." Sydney muttered into Charlie's small head.

"So was cleaning up my hamster."

***

Billie Joe lay on the couch, his head tilted to the side, his eyes closed with his mouth wide open, sound asleep. His hand twitched from the dream he was having, a small line of drool forming at the side of his lips.

He grunted, turning over on the couch, curling up into a ball.

The worst part about flying was jetlag, in which he was suffering at the moment.

He licked his lips slowly, stretching out, still asleep, curling back up into the ball. There was silence in the house, Sydney upstairs on the computer, me putting away everything from the suitcases.

It would have stayed silent if a deafening howl didn't shoot it's self through the house. The small bichon frise ran through the house, howling it's ass off, making Billie Joe jump up with a yelp, falling off the couch.

He groaned angrily, placing his hand on his head, angrily cursing at the little dog that was running by. He crawled over past the table, watching the small dog come closer, still running. He reached out, grabbing it, making it yelp, pressing it firmly against his chest, making the poor dog stand on it's two hind legs.

"Shut.The.Hell.Up.Charlie." Billie Joe muttered angrily into Charlie's ear, holding his snout closed.

He let go of the dogs snout slowly, still holding him closely.

"I'm warning you, dammit. Jesus..why can't you be a cat? They don't bark. They sleep."

There was a sound of footsteps, Billie Joe looking over to whoever it was.

"Dad! What are you doing to him!?"

Billie Joe groaned, letting go of the small dog, pushing himself against the couch, sitting on the ground.

"I was trying to sleep." He mumbled, "But the goddamn dog woke me up."

"He was just protecting us.."

Billie Joe looked at his daughter, quirking an eyebrow.

"From what?"

Sydney placed a hand on her hip, shifting her weight to one leg as she picked up the bichon frise.

"Dad..you'll be thankful some day when Charlie saves your life."

Billie Joe blinked a few times, pushing himself back onto the couch.

"Hun..I seriously doubt that that thing will save me."

"Haven't you ever heard of Lassie?"

The rocker nodded his head slowly, "Yeah..but that was a smart dog..this one is fucked up."

"Dad! Ugh..come on Charlie, we don't have to listen to him insult you like this."

Billie Joe snorted, "Yeah, please, take him away from me. I may strangle him."

***

"Can I get sleep in here?"

I lifted my eyes to meet tired green ones, half opened.

"The dog keeps barking downstairs..Sydney's playing music..there's no bed in the studio downstairs..and if I don't get sleep soon I swear I'm gonna cry."

I laughed to myself, pushing some of the shirts and clothing off of a side of the bed, where Billie Joe stumbled over to.

"Fuck..thank you..I love you so much.." He yawned, sliding into the bed, curling up.

He closed his eyes for a moment, yawning once again, before opening them slightly and looking at me, smiling to himself.

"Come to bed with mee.." He mumbled, reaching out to me, and pulling me down on the bed.

I giggled, pulling myself from him.

"I've got to put this stuff away."

Billie Joe groaned, kicking half the stuff off the bed.

"There. Now it doesn't look bad on the bed. Lay down, sleep, and when we get up I'll pick everything up."
I hesitated, sitting on the bed slowly, Billie Joe's hand wrapping it's self around my arm.

"Yeah, but hun, when you clean, somehow everything ends up in the closet."

Billie Joe flashed one of his innocent smiles, moving closer to me.

"That's because you get me so hyped up." He mumbled, "You tell me to clean something, and then tell me that after I can have sex or something..so I freak out..and then I shove everything in one place, to trick you, and then I clean it up later."

I quirked an eyebrow, biting my bottom lip, folding my arms.

"Oh really?"

"Uh..yeah.."

"I guess I won't be falling for that trick anymore," I murmured with a playful smile on my lips, making him sigh and pretend to pout.

I giggled once again, laying my body down next to his, curling up to his side, my head resting in the crook of his neck. I placed my hand on his arm gently, him cuddling against me.

"I got yelled at before.." He mumbled, "Sydney got mad when I held her dogs snout closed."

"Why were you doing that?"

"The dumbass ran through the fucking livingroom howling when I was sound asleep."

"That dog loves you."

"That dog fucking hates me." He grunted

I laughed into his neck, playing with his hair absent-mindedly, Billie Joe always enjoying it when I did so.

"I like it when you do that." He mumbled, his eyes closing slowly.

"Mhm..I know.."

His eyes stayed close, his head tilting back into my hand making me smile.

"You're like a dog," I pointed out, a grin on my face.

"Hmm?"

"When Charlie gets behind his ear scratched, he closes his eyes and tilts his head back.."

"But he's just a stupid mutt.." Billie Joe said simply, making me shake my head and laugh.

Billie Joe gave me a lopsided smile, breathing deeply, slowly falling asleep.

"I'm going to finish putting this stuff away.."

Billie Joe's eyes snapped open, him reaching out and grabbing hold of me before I could even move.

"Billie.."

"No..come on..come back..sleep.."

"But I can't. It's hard for me to fall asleep during the day. And don't you want this room looking somewhat normal? It looks like it's been abandoned."

"Babe, I live on a bus for a year at times. I've shared apartments with Mike and Tre. I'm a guy. Do you really think I care?"

"Sadly, no."

"Exactly..now come back to me.."

I sighed pathetically, kissing his cheek.

"I can't stand this room being a mess. Let me just put everything away."

"No."

I groaned angrily, him pulling my body back on the bed, taking it to his advantage that he is bigger and strong than I am. He pulled me against him, curling his body against mine once again, pressing his stubbled cheek against my arm. He wrapped an arm around my slim figure, playing with the waist line to my sweat pants. There was silence in the room of the house, only echo's of Sydney's music flooding through every once in a while.

Billie Joe sighed deeply, pressing his lips softly against my skin, his fingers sliding up my arm.

"God," He mumbled softly into my neck, breathing in my scent, "I wish everything could always be this way."