Hail and Farewell to Paris

“Ava listen to this voice message, is this Mike?”
Billie put the phone to my ear where a loud beep emitted followed by a profanity growling down the speaker.
I frowned as Billie lifted the phone away,
“I have no idea, why would he leave you a message saying that?”
The singer shrugged his shoulders across the breakfast table, reaching forwards for more toast.
The Danieli Hotel was beautiful, very classic gothic with lush thick red carpets and golden encrusted chandeliers. Our room was as equally impressive, a massive king size bed with towering cream wardrobes and a marble bath that could be classed as a swimming pool. This hotel was so enormous that we had not yet seen all the glory of the building after being here for nearly a week.
“Call him Billie”
The singer tightened his jaw and I glanced at him in confusion.
“What is it?”
“I just…”
“Good Morning”
We both looked up as the podgy waitress came over to our table with more coffee.
“Good morning” I smiled back at her.
“Coffee?” she asked, her wide toothy grin spreading across her face. I shook my head but she poured us both a cup anyway.
“If you are interested there is a parade this afternoon in the Piazza San Marco.”
“Oh wow thank you for letting us know” I politely answered
She chuckled and winked at me before trotting off to pour out more hot coffee to the other guests.
“Is that the square with those fuckin pigeons?” Billie sighed stirring the piping liquid in his china cup.
“Yes” I giggled, remembering how we had first walked through the square a couple of days ago only to have been attacked by hundreds upon hundreds of grey pigeons. Billie was fuming all day when one or two decided to leave him a little gift on the shoulder of o his favorite Mick Jones jacket. I didn’t help because I couldn’t stop laughing when an elderly Italian woman yelled at him it was ‘good luck’ and he shouldn’t wash it off when he tried to attack the stain with a napkin.
“I’m taking a fuckin umbrella then. Out of all the people in that square they decide to shit on me”
I chuckled shaking my head, “they probably are just big Green Day fans.”
“…fuckin rats with wings that’s what they are” he growled downing his coffee.

Later on we had ventured forth into the small but beautiful Venetian streets in pursuit of trying to find this parade, unfortunately Billie had decided to take a short cut and we were officially lost.
He refused to admit it.
I sighed and leaned against the wall behind me as Billie continued to revolve the map in his hands at the edge of the canal whispering profanities to himself angrily.
“Right if the Rialto Bridge is that way then we… must…be…no…wait is that The Bridge of Sighs though? Why the fuck does it all look the fucking same?”
I bit my lip and slowly walked over to him, “This street is Rio della Verona”
He turned to me sharply, “Now how the hell did you know that?”
“It’s on the street sign on that house” I pointed behind me to the wall I had just been resting on.
Billie sighed, “Fuckin stupid city”

I smiled to myself, Billie had the knack for getting completely lost but I couldn’t get angry, every street did look the same, it was just a labyrinth of little houses and arched bridges and if Billie wasn’t so hopeless at direction then we would have never met in the first place. But this was getting silly now, it was pushing late afternoon and we had been walking around for what felt like days.
“Billie can I see the map?”
“No Ava I’m working it out” he turned his back on me quickly, hunching protectively over the paper.
“Bill…”
“No Aves, I’m the man I’ll find the way”
I shook my head and sat on the edge of the canal patiently, he was such a baby sometimes.
“I wonder what it’s like when it’s high water? You’d be in trouble if you got lost then” I uttered, trying to desperately relieve some tension.
“We’re not lost” Billie spat.
“No Billie Joe we are lost, we don’t know where we are, and we’ve walked down three streets only to find a canal at the end of them”
“I’m doing the best I can” he snarled shaking the map in defense.
“If you just let me look…let me help…” I began standing up.
“No Ava”
“Billie for God’s sake you know you’re hopeless, you have no sense of direction” I snapped pulling at the map as he snatched it back.
“Ava! No I want to get out of here, I want to do it”
“Just give me the map!”
“No!”
“Billie…stop being…such a…baby”
“Let me do it…”
I pulled at the paper and Billie shoved me backwards, I had suddenly ran out of cobbled street beneath my heels and was falling I felt myself falling and I instinctively grabbed Billie’s lapel from his jacket and then he fell forwards too…
SPLASH
Murky green water all around me as I fought for air, dripping wet, I turned my head ready to scream at him but there was no sign of Billie anywhere around me.
“Billie!” I yelled, splashing in the canal for him desperately, I had heard some of these canals were nearly 15ft deep.
“Billie! Argh!”
I was suddenly pulled under again only to resurface to face that stupid grin.
“You bastard!”
I yelled slapping his chest as he cackled loudly.
“You pushed me! You pushed me in! Then decide to give me a heart attack!” I bawled
“Yeah well you pulled me in here!” he growled following me to the edge of the canal as we hoisted ourselves out.
“Because you pushed me!” I snapped wringing out my ruined blue dress that had turned slightly see through at the hemwere the material ran thinner.
“This dress is dry clean only I can’t believe it’s ruined. Oh God I stink, I don’t believe that has just happened that was so dangerous Billie! How could you push me in? My dress? My hair?”
Billie was keeled over laughing so hard he couldn’t breathe. I frowned and trounced over to him, snatching the now soaking map from his grip. The fact that he wasn’t at all bothered made me more angry.
“Hey!” he spat
“No, I’m wet and smelly and we need to get back to the hotel”
I found the street we were on and turned around, “It’s this way” I growled taking his sleeve and dragging him back down the way we had come.
I could feel my hair sticking to my neck, my eye make up running down my cheeks I felt disgusting and sticky from the green and murky canal, gods only knows what is present in that water.
“Ava” Billie whispered now dragging behind me slightly.
“Ava…”
“What?” I snapped more harshly than I intended, spinning around to face him, my eyes blaring in hot temper.
He stopped and looked at me, smiling with shiny, shiny eyes. I knew that look.
“You don’t know how much this is turning me on” he whispered.
My jaw dropped at him.
“You are seriously joking right? Because I am so angry right now I could hit you”
Billie slowly traced his tongue across his bottom lip ever so secretively.
“Well…yeah I kinda noticed”
I dropped his sleeve like a hot cake.
“No way, don’t even think about it Billie Joe, we need to get back to the hotel”
He looked around us quickly before grabbing my arm and dragging me backwards into a small deserted street.
“Billie! We can’t! No! Stop it…”
But before I could protest any further my back was met with the ancient brick of an Italian house. The map dropped from my hands falling slowly to the cobbles as Billie’s mouth crashed against my own. The tang of the dirty water made me cringe slightly but I didn’t care, in all honesty we hadn’t had sex like this since before the People magazine came out.

He pulled away and traced his thumbs under my eyes, wiping away the remains of mascara and eyeliner. He kissed my cheek, before kissing my chin, my jaw, my neck so assiduously it sent, sending erratic chills up my spine and causing my hands to dive for his soaking hair, bringing him even closer to me.
“What if someone walks past? What if we need a tetanus from that water? We should…” I was suddenly cut off by Billie’s attacking lips once more. I groaned slightly at the friction that sent my body into a frozen coma.
I mumbled something against his lips trying to process my thoughts quickly before gathering my strength and pushing him backwards.
He stumbled slightly, regaining his posture on teh uneven floor and looking at me sternly, both our chests were heaving, that shiny look in his eyes enthralled me and he just knew that my defense was hanging on a thread.
He looked so amazingly hot, standing only four steps away from me, thin lines of water dripping across his nose, his black shirt sticking to his chest as if it were painted to his skin. He stared at me, a slow smutty grin emerging in the corners of his mouth.

Suddenly I jumped as his shoulder blades raised, his arms stripping themselves from his clinging jacket as quick as lightening. He flung the leather to the ground with a loud SPLAT sound and I smirked as he advanced towards me, lifting me around his torso so ruthlessly it took me a moment to realize that he had won. The hot damp feeling of that wet cotton shirt against my own soaking torso made my mind turn blank and all I could think about was him and us and how I could not ruin this gloriously exciting moment for anything.

Point de vu du Billie Joe

Later on in the hotel, when Ava and I were both clean and lying on the huge mattress together the phone rang shrilly, causing us both to jump a foot from the covers.
“Hello?” I answered cautiously, watching her walk into the bathroom, the silk nightdress gliding like liquid across her skin.
“Hey Bill”
“Mike, hey, did you leave me that voice message?”
“Yeah”
I sat up in bed, moving the duvet around till I was comfortable; Mike had that serious tone in his voice. In all honesty at hearing Mike’s voice I had nearly died. I hadn’t called him back because I didn’t want to speak to him incase it was bad news, incase things had got worse at home. I was hesitant of ringing Ollie for god’s sake.
“What’s up?”
Mike sighed down the phone, “Bill man, now before you make a snap decision just listen to me okay?”
“O-kay” I frowned, my eyes tracing Ava as she left the bathroom, grinning at me before walking to the sofas and settling herself with a book.
“Okay Bill…the album has gone back up to number one”
“WHAT?” I roared, “How? Why? What?”
Ava glanced at me, but my mind was racing…
“All the attention you’ve been getting because of Ava…”
“Do we have to do more press then?”
Mike sighed, “we’ve been asked to…”
I swallowed, that would mean me leaving, us, leaving and I had promised a three week break. Oh Shit.
I stared at Ava, her magnificent head hanging low over her book. Since we’ve been out here we’ve had such a good time. She’s loosened up, she’s distracted from the public, she’s away from cameras, we’ve been better as a couple. Oh god…but I couldn’t leave all the work to the guys, people would start asking more questions.
“Mike I…”
“I know Bill, I know, I’ve been thinking though, why don’t you just get Gus out there and do a video link up? Say you’re writing new stuff and…”
“Do you think that would work?” I cut across him, sitting up straighter in excitement.
“Yeah why not…I’ll ring Gus and ask him”
God bless Gus the camera guy, if this worked it would turn out perfect, I loved Mike, I really did.
“Mike thanks, seriously”
The bassist chuckled slightly down the phone, “It’s alright man, you and Ava deserve a break”
I smiled down the phone, “ Oh yean but are you missing her loads? You and Ava have become really close huh?”
Mike grunted uncomfortably, not quite getting that I was winding him up, “Bill man…she…you know she helped me a lot with that Brittany shit, I…you know I get on with her and after all that crap with Sarah…”
I chuckled.
“You bastard” he sighed actually acknowledging my piss- taking.
I laughed harder causing Ava to look up at me, I winked at her and she blushed slightly making my stomach turn over, Mike coughed loudly.
“Anyway lover man, you mom keeps calling you and you’re not picking up so I suggest you call her because I’m getting the shitty end of the stick.”
I laughed harder, “Okay, okay I will I promise.”
“Bye Billie, say Hi to Ava for me”
“And declare you’re undying love to her?”
“Fuck off shithouse”
“Bye Mike”
“Bye gobshite have fun, p.s. I'm sick of being the one who has to sort your shit out."
I chuckled as he put the phone down, Ava turned to me,
“Was that Mike, Mike as in Mike Dirnt?”
“Yeah he said hi” I smiled as I stood up, walking over to the sofa and folding my arms around her neck as she read.
“Aw, I like Mike” she chuckled.
“Guess what?” I whispered into her black curls, the smell of spicy hairspray tickling my face,
“What?”
“The album is number one again”
She suddenly jumped up and brought me close to her chest, I chuckled as she squealed in excitement.
“Really? Oh Billie I’m so proud of you, well done.”
She kissed me softly bringing me down onto the couch with her.
“Guess who helped?”
“Who?” she asked, a perfect eyebrow raising,
“You”
“Me? How did I help?”
“All publicity is good publicity”
She flapped her hand like I was talking nonsense, “Oh Billie please, that’s not true, half of your fans probably smashed their CDs in protest then realized they couldn’t listen to your music with a cracked piece of plastic”
“Ava…it’s true you helped...so… thanks”
She snorted, picking up her book again, her eyes darting to me every now and then as I watched her pale skin turn each page carefully. Sometimes I couldn’t understand her at all.
“Why are you staring at me Billie Joe?”
“You did you know you helped, people hear about us through the press, check us out, like us... so…I dunno…just except it”
I got up and walked over to the bathroom myself, why did she always blame herself for bad things happening and yet when something good happens it has nothing to do with her? I didn’t understand that. I wanted to do something special, we had to go out and celebrate the album being number one, I had made my mind up.
“AVA!” I yelled from around the bathroom door.
“Yes Billie?”
“Put on a nice dress, like a really nice dress, we are off celebrating tonight”
“Okay, but I get to navigate the way this time”
I chuckled and shut the door, it wasn’t my fault I was utterly fucking useless at reading maps and stuff, but I definitely knew which direction I was going in with Ava now. I smiled to myself as I thought of the small box wrapped in a pair of socks in the corner of my suitcase. How she hadn’t found it yet I don’t know, but she’ll see it, she’ll see it very soon.