Best Man

Caroline sat in the grass, in the backyard, beside the rose bush that had been planted the summer before as part of her multiple birthday gifts from Mike.

Armed with nothing but a pad of recycled notebook paper with a fleur-de-lis design in the upper left hand corner and a fountain pen, she kept her back to the house and stared off into space as she finished jotting down some thoughts, lyrics and clever sayings or comments that came to her head.

She was, for all purposes, beginning to feel a tad stir crazy.

Here it was -- June 2008. She was completely and utterly bored because The Sinners had wrapped up the last bit of touring almost three months prior. And, yes, they had plans to return to the studio sometime before the summer was out to work on their sophomore album; the follow-up to Last Rites. But there was a hint of static in the air.

Caroline could almost feel the kinetic energy of strained ideas and restless hearts beating and pulsing all around her like poprocks assaulting one's mouth.

She had so many ideas and feelings she wanted to write and sing about, but the hard part was actually putting it into words and then conveying it to her band so music could be added in a way that made everything flow like the Danube.

She wrote a new song the other day called 'Crying In The Shower' but she wasn't sure it was something she'd feel comfortable placing on an album. Perhaps it was something she should keep for herself. Then there was the song she was trying to work on at the moment.

She'd had the lyrics all set out earlier that morning, in her head, but as soon as she grabbed her pen and paper, and then found a nice place to sit in the backyard, the lyrics had slowly seemed to dissipate.

But she did remember a few lines she liked.

The song was called 'Delicate Breed.' Very metaphoric and pretty. The message she was trying to get across was how, even though a person or object may seem delicate and soft, strength and thick skin comes with age and experience. That it answers the question poised in the movie, Batman Begins.

Why do we fall?

The answer?

So that we can pick ourselves up.

The lovely brunette could've gone on, just staring into space for another solid hour if it hadn't have been for the sound of feet softly padding their way through the grass behind her.

Turning her head and lifting a hand to shade her hazel eyes from the sunlight beaming down on her, Caroline found herself staring up at Billie Joe.

The Green Day frontman had long since trimmed his dark hair to the length it had been when American Idiot first hit stores nearly four years prior, and then dyed it a shade of dirty blonde. It was a new look for him, but he pulled it off. Especially with the tan he had, making his skin golden and warm. And the one look from the American Idiot era he couldn't seem to part with just yet, was his penchant for donning smoky, dark kohl around his green eyes.

However, he wasn't wearing it now. He simply looked like any other Average Joe in California in June.

Dressed in a pair of knee-length, denim shorts and a Buffalo Bills T-shirt she'd given him as a sort of joke on his birthday months earlier, Billie Joe smiled down at her and sank to the ground, occupying a patch of grass beside her.

"To what do I owe this unannounced visit?" Caroline queried.

"I was bored," came a blunt answer from his lips as he pulled a pack of cigarettes from his pockets, followed by a lighter.

"Those things will kill you."

"So will being bludgeoned with a hammer," the guitarist quipped, placing a 'cancer stick' between his lips and lighting it as he mumbled out his response to her.

"So, really. Why're you visiting me by my little rose bush?" Caroline pestered on, closing her notebook and setting it on the ground; laying the pen on top of it.

"Well, I came by to see Mike. Then noticed his car was gone. But, you never know. Maybe it was parked in the garage with yours, you know? So, I walked to the front door, it was unlocked, I helped myself in. As usual," he added. "After calling out and getting no response I made my way through the house and out the back door where I saw your little figure hunched over. So, I figured, why not chat with Care? I came all this way. Might as well make the most of it."

"All this way?" she repeated, raising an eyebrow. "Billie, you live a few blocks away."

"And I walked," was his answer. "Anyway. Whatcha writing? Is it top secret?"

Caroline shrugged. "Not necessarily. It's just some random lyrics. I've been trying to figure out this song I wanna write." Billie Joe just nodded. "Have you ever had an idea for a song in your head but you couldn't just get it out onto paper or just into any form of words, be it written or spoken?"

Billie Joe paused, contemplating her question as he took a long drag from his cigarette, pulled it away from his lips and exhaled a cloud of smoke into the air between them.

He nodded. "All the time."

"What do you do to...you know...get your idea across?"

Placing the cigarette to his lips once more after flicking the ashes into the grass, Billie Joe tilted his head to one side. "I try bouncing my ideas as best as I can, usually, off Adrienne or the guys. And if that doesn't help I stay up all night and day until it finally comes to me," he answered. "Sometimes I'll just step away from it all and come back to it later. I mean, personally, when I write a song, I usually start with the music first, then come up with lyrics. Though, not all the time. Just...just most of the time."

Casting her a squinted glance because of the sunlight, Billie Joe gave a nod of his head.

"Wanna bounce your ideas off of me?"

Thinking about it for a moment, Caroline nodded. "Sure." She handed him her notebook. "Read what little I have of the lyrics to 'Delicate Breed' first and tell me what you think, then I'll try and explain what I wanna say with it all."

"Mmkay," Billie Joe mumbled through his cigarette-occupied lips. Taking the notebook in his hands, he glanced upon the page she opened it up to and read.

"Well?" she inquired after a few moments.

"I like what you got so far. It's...oh, what's the word..." he trailed, looking off past her in thought. "I dunno. Well, for a lack of better words, it's, you know...delicate. The name fits the flow. Know what I mean?"

Caroline nodded. "Yeah."



When Mike returned home that evening, he was met by the sound of incessant laughter, a guitar and the faint scent of cigarettes and Axe body spray.

Billie Joe.

Stepping into his living room, there was his best friend sitting Indian-style on the floor with one of Mike's acoustic guitars in his lap while Caroline sat up on the couch; her knees pulled to her chest with her arms wrapped around them. The television was on, but muted and a few bottles of Heineken sat on the coffee table near the ash tray the smaller man was using for his 'cancer sticks.'

"What's going on?" Mike asked with a confused smile.

Caroline laughed. "Billie Joe's helping me write a song. I just couldn't seem to get the words out on my own, so we've been throwing lyrics back and forth to each other all day, jamming a little and joking around too." She let go of her grasp around her legs and hopped off the couch with a fervor as she practically leapt up into Mike's arms.

Catching her with no problem at all, Mike happily allowed her to snake her legs around his waist as his hands cupped her ass to hold her up.

"And I take it you're sick of playing with Billie and now you want me to save you from him so you can play with me now?" Mike joked.

Caroline snickered as she pressed her lips to Mike's cheek. "No," was her answer. "Billie's not bothering me. We've actually been having a lot of fun. Kind of like...I dunno...brother and sister type shit."

"Yup," Billie Joe concurred.

Mike looked between Caroline and Billie Joe and back to Caroline. "In that case, how's the song?"

"Beautiful," she replied with a smirk. "We just finished it about fifteen minutes ago. Wanna hear?"

Mike smiled, then nodded. "Sure."

Letting his fiancee slide down him, Mike watched as she sank to the floor beside Billie Joe and grabbed two sheets of paper that had lyrics written all over them. As Mike sat down on the couch across from them, he watched as Caroline held the lyrics for both her and Billie Joe to read as he situated himself with the guitar; finding the right chords.

When the song began, it was just Caroline singing the first verse, then the second, but then Billie Joe came in for the chorus, singing harmony to her melody, and Mike had to admit; the two of them were musically awesome as a pair. Their voices went together like tea and honey.

As the chorus ended, Billie Joe began to sing the third verse, which led into the chorus again, sang by both. Then there was a small bridge and the chorus twice more which they, again, also sang together. In the midst of all those parts, Billie Joe played a little musical interlude that was reminiscent of the sound from the Smashing Pumpkins' song 'Cupid de Locke.'

It was just plucky, yet...gentle.

Once the song was over, the pair on the floor looked up at Mike rather expectantly, and all the taller man could do was smile and laugh.

"What?" Caroline asked, a little offput.

"Nothing. It's just...I mean, the song is...awesome. One of the greatest I've heard in a long time. But I'm not laughing at the song. I'm laughing because the two of you look like two little kids who just made a picture out of macaroni and are completely head over heels for your piece of art. And, let's be honest. Who doesn't love macaroni art?"

Slightly bemused, Caroline cocked her head to the side and narrowed her eyes at her fiance. "So, you love the song, but you're comparing it to dried pasta glued to construction paper?"

Mike smirked, apologetically, but nodded nonetheless. "Yes. Yes, I am."

Billie Joe shrugged. "Works for me."

Turning her head to the shorter man, Caroline gave him a faux frown and then shoved him a little. "Dork."

Mike smiled as he watched his best friend and his best woman.

He was so happy that the two of them could get along like this and not have it awkward or make him feel suspicious in the slightest.

Not like how it would be with Caroline and Tre.

There was a love lost between that pairing and with how the younger man had been avoiding being near Mike and Caroline at the same time, it perked some questions and suspicions. And Mike wasn't sure he was liking the vibe he was getting lately.

That's why he was thankful for the friendship between Billie Joe and Caroline.

It was a breath of fresh air.