Holiday In Cambodia

Mike gripped the bottle of water between his shaking hands, feeling an overwhelming sense of calm and relief descend upon him as the boat gently rocked on the waves beneath him. He stared down at the floor of the boat, watching the grain of the dirty wood slide in and out of focus as his eyes persistently attempted to persuade him to give up trying altogether.

He was distracted by Jason, to his left, who suddenly hunched forwards, putting his head in his hands before sliding the heels of his palms over his face and rubbing his tired eyes.

"Hey," Mike murmured, turning to him, "You did a good job, man."

Jason looked up, meeting Mike's sincere blue eyes with his own. Mike continued.
"Seriously, Jason. I can't even describe right now... if it weren't for you and Lara... we'd be... "
"You'd have done it for me," Jason told him, confidently, not wanting him to finish the sentence, "Any of you guys would."

Billie Joe, who was sitting opposite, looked up at Jason's words.
"In a second," he agreed, "We'll always look out for each other. But that doesn't take away from what you did, man."

Jason smiled a little, looking down at his dirty hands.
"I did what I had to do," he said, modestly, "And I couldn't have done it without Lara."
At the mention of her name, the three men looked over to the other side of the boat, where Lara was curled up on the seat, wrapped in a blanket with her eyes closed.

"You know," Jason continued, seriously, "Before all this happened, I wasn't really sure where I was headed. I wasn't sure where I belonged."
He looked up, glancing between Billie and Mike, who were listening intently.
"I didn't know if I was really a part of all this... of you guys... or if ever truly would be. But for some reason... everything is starting to feel different."
"You've always been a part of it, Jason," Mike told him, hoarsely, "And never more than you are now."
Jason smiled, as Billie Joe leaned forward, shaking his tangled black hair from his eyes.
"Jase... " he said, sincerely, "As far as I'm concerned, you're as much Green Day as I am. And once we get back to the states, I'm going to be making sure everybody knows that."

Maggie smiled, listening to the bandmates' conversation behind her, as she leant her aching head against Rick's shoulder, causing him to glance down at her and smile, wrapping his arm around her shoulders.

She glanced to the other side of the boat, where Jack and Amber were being checked over by paramedics. She watched the way Jack closed his fingers around Amber's trembling hand, and felt tears come to her eyes, the aftershock of their ordeal finally setting in.

Rick looked down, noticing his friend's tears and pulling her closer against him. Maggie let out a shaky sigh, wiping her eyes as she rested her head back against his shoulder.

"I missed you," she told him, simply.
Rick smiled.
"I missed you too," he agreed, "It was fucking shit not being able to get over to you guys, especially what with Tre being so sick and everything."
"I'm so worried about him, Rick."
"Don't worry, babe. The air ambulance will get him home damn fast, so he can be properly looked after. No worries. It probably isn't anything serious, anyway, it's just been made worse by what we've been through."
Maggie nodded, as Rick squeezed her shoulders.
"So is anything new with you?" he smiled, teasingly.
She smiled, glancing up at him for a moment, before looking back out at the water.
"Well... " she murmured, a small smile tugging at her lips, "I did have this pretty hot dream you might be interested in... "

Once the boat landed in Ha Tien, the group were driven to the Hai Van Hotel, where they were a little surprised to find they all had reservations.
"I was expecting to go back to Guesthouse Paradiso," remarked Jack, wearily, as he looked around him, dazed by the sight of the beachgoers and the unfamiliar noise of the city.

The paramedic next to him smiled, reaching out an arm to steady Jack as he stumbled a little on his weakened legs.
"Apparently once we got in touch with the band's folks their manager got rooms for all of you. You've been through hell together, you all need a nice bed and some decent food before anything else."

Amber smiled, the thought of food and sleep overwhelming to her as she gripped Jack's hand.
"Was their manager surprised when you told him where they turned up?"
"He was beside himself. We don't get many Western news stories down here, but we'd heard this one. Some rock band disappears off the face of the Earth. Four million Green Day fans devastated. Teenagers in counselling all over the states... "
"Fuck me," remarked Jack, with a sigh, feeling a shiver run down his spine, "I had no idea it would cause such a stir."
"Caused a stir, alright. They're getting flown out from Phnom Penh tomorrow afternoon, and I have a feeling they're going to get quite a welcome. How about you two, home to the UK?"
Jack shrugged, wrapping his arm around Amber and rubbing his face with his other hand.
"That's the plan," he said, "But we haven't got our passports. They could be anywhere by now."
"The embassy'll sort you out with some emergency ones, don't worry about that. That's what they're there for, just let them deal with it and try not to worry."

Jack was about to answer when his attention was distracted by the commotion that had suddenly broken out in front of the hotel behind him, and he turned to see Billie Joe, Mike and Jason being simultaneously accosted by two men that he didn't recognise.

"I'm guessing that's their management," Amber told him, with a small smile, watching Jason get hugged so tightly that he appeared to be having some trouble breathing, "They must have been really worried about them."
Jack nodded, taking a deep breath.
"I guess they were probably wondering if they were going to get them back at all. And let's be honest, if it weren't for Lara and Jason there's a strong possibility that they wouldn't have."
Amber nodded, sliding her arm around Jack's waist as they made their way toward the hotel.
"Come on," she said, "I need food, and sleep and a shower. In that order."
Jack smiled, kissing the top of her head.
"Sounds pretty damn good to me."

A few hours later, after a good meal, the majority of the group were settled in Mike's room, staring blankly at the TV, which wouldn't have made any sense to them if anyone had been paying attention to it anyway. They were all lost in thought, unable to believe that they were safe in the real world, and at the same time unable to believe that the ordeal they had suffered had really happened at all. They hadn't talked much, and there had been no mention of Tre, though he dominated each of their thoughts, stirring anxiety in each of their stomachs, and causing an ache in each of their hearts.

Jason let out a breath; turning to face Lara, who was lying next to him on Mike's bed, her eyes half closed as she relished in the feel of the pillow beneath her head.
"Are you flying out home tomorrow?" he asked her, quietly, distracting her from the entrancing sound of the Vietnamese news show, which was making her wish she could understand anything of the language in the country that was really her origin.
She looked up at him, and nodded.
"I'm flying back to Thailand first... I called my Mom. Apparently they had been going crazy I hadn't been in touch, but she forgave me pretty fast when I told her why. My sister's wedding party are leaving Koh Samui tomorrow and flying back out of Bangkok the next day. I'm gonna meet them at the airport."
Jason nodded, swallowing as he pushed a lock of her hair out of her dark eyes.
"We're flying home tomorrow," he told her.
"I bet you can't wait. You get some time out of your tour?"
Jason smiled.
"They said we can take as much time as we need," he said, "But I can bet... give it two weeks and Billie's feet will be itching to get back on a stage. We'll probably be on the bus again after the holidays are over."
Lara nodded, chewing thoughtfully on her lip for a moment, before she spoke again.
"I'm so relieved to be back," she said, softly, "And I'm aching to get back to Toronto but... I don't know... I'm just going to miss... everyone."
Jason nodded, laying his head back on the pillow next to hers.
"I'll miss you," he told her, looking her straight in the eye as he took her fingers in his own.
"... I'll miss you too," she told him, hoarsely, "I mean... I still can't believe you're here with me. I can't believe it's really you, and we're really... us. But... this sprung up on us so fast and it... it feels so intense already. But maybe that's cause of how we met... being on that island made everything intense. You and me... what does it mean?"
Jason glanced down at their fingers, before raising his eyes back to hers.
"It means a lot to me," he said, softly.

Lara smiled, feeling a flicker of relief as she let her eyes wander over his face.
"Me too," she whispered, "... When you're in Toronto... you'll come visit, right?"
Jason smiled.
"Only if you come visit me."
"Deal," Lara replied, leaning in to kiss him.

Looking in the mirror in the en suite bathroom of her hotel room, Maggie barely recognised herself. She didn't think she had ever seen her skin looking so dark, the usual sprinkling of freckles across her nose almost completely obscured by her tan. She threaded her fingers into her hair, wincing as the tangles pulled at the roots, and sighed. She had a feeling she was going to have to just chop it all off and start again.

It felt great to finally get clean, but her legs felt weak as she trudged back into the bedroom, pulling on her dirty jeans and wishing she had a change of clothes. She found herself suddenly thirsty again, unable to believe how much water she had downed since their rescue, so she headed out of the room in search of a drink, passing Mike's room on her way and smiling as she heard the murmur of familiar voices seeping out from the gap in the ajar door.

She gripped the handrail as she descended the stairs down to the hotel lobby, not quite trusting herself not to fall over completely. She knew that she had to have some sleep, but she also knew that her mind was racing far too much for her to get any.

She smiled at the lady on reception as she crossed the entrance hall, before coming to an unsteady halt at the sight of the call box in the corner, a familiar figure leant up against the inside of it, hunched forward with the receiver pressed to his ear. The usual fluttering in her stomach turned to heartbreak at the sight of his tears, and the way his shoulders shook as he sobbed into the phone. She watched him bring a shaking hand up to his eyes to wipe at them, and she knew that the person he had enshrined across the inside of that arm was the same one that his heart was aching for now.

Feeling suddenly as though she were intruding, Maggie turned around and made her way back towards the stairs, feeling a strange mixture of sadness and acceptance settle in her stomach. She knew he had made the right choice, and she knew that, in his heart, there had never been any question about whether he would make it. She just hoped that someone would love her that much one day.

A sharp pain in the back of Tre's hand made him stir, and he felt his nerves twinge when his blurry eyes found no sign of Billie Joe next to him. He tried to turn his head, but the aching in it made him close his eyes again, distracting him from his confusion about his whereabouts. The ground beneath him felt softer, but the roaring sound that made up the background noise left him more unsettled than he had been before. He felt fear shoot through him until a woman came into view, and he felt a cool hand against his hot forehead.

"Tre?"
He blinked, murmuring a response to the unfamiliar voice until he could focus on her face, and he managed to form the question for which he was desperate to find an answer.
"Where am I?"
"On a plane," the woman replied, "It's an air ambulance. We're flying you back to San Francisco. How are you feeling?"
"I'm... my head... where's... "
"It's okay," she said, soothingly, coming down so that her face was level with his, "I know it's confusing... You've been on an island off the coast of Vietnam. Do you remember?"
"Of course I... what the fuck happened?"
"You got sick, but you're safe now. You're going home."
"Mike and Billie and... we left Jason and-"
"Shh... they're safe too. They're flying home soon. You'll see them at the other end. We just had to get you to hospital back home."
"Am I really sick?"
"We're gonna run some tests. You should be fine with a strong course of antibiotics. I just put an IV right into your blood stream so we can get some fluids into you fast. Just relax, and try and sleep."
"Billie said I shouldn't... "
"You're safe now. Don't worry. He's looked after you well."

Tre nodded, then swallowed, bringing a hand up to his head.
"My kids... I need to call home, I-"
"It's okay. Everyone back home knows you're safe, and they'll be there to meet you, you'll see them real soon. Now get some rest and call me if you need anything. My name's Elizabeth."

Tre nodded, resting for a moment before a dim realization set in and he opened one eye.
"Elizabeth?"
"Uh huh?"
"... You like swimming?"

Back at the hotel, the only sound in Mike's room was coming from the TV, which cast a pale, flickering light over the sleeping bodies inside. Maggie rolled over, entangling her arms from Rick's waist only to crash into Mike, who was stretched out next to her, his long legs dangling over the edge of the bed.

They stirred at the sound of the door creaking open, and Mike opened his eyes as Billie Joe walked in, hair wet and face clean-shaven, smirking at the sight of his friends. He slid his hands into the pockets of his pants, thankful that Rob had had the good sense to bring some clean clothes with him, but considering, with amusement, that he had only needed book one room. They had slept all afternoon, but even that seemed too strange to do without the company of the others, it simply felt wrong not to be together.

Jack yawned and stretched, eliciting a grumble from Jason when his arm ended up in his face.
"How's the Mrs?" he asked Billie Joe, rubbing his eyes.
"Relieved," Billie Joe replied, with a smile, "And more than a little hysterical."
"Know what you mean," said Jason, groggily, "I couldn't make out one word of what my Mom said."
Billie Joe smiled, as the door opened behind him and Rob walked in, looking Billie Joe up and down for a moment before offering him a grin.
"... What?"
"Nothing. Just didn't think I'd ever see those drainpipes hang off you like that."
Billie Joe chuckled.
"Don't worry," he said, patting his stomach, "I'm planning on taking care of that as soon as I get home. Any news about Tre?"
Rob shook his head.
"They haven't landed yet, but I'll keep you guys posted."
"What are we gonna tell the fans? Do they know we're safe yet?"
"Yeah... we've released a statement saying you guys are fine, but that Tre needs to spend some time getting checked out in hospital. No point panicking people."
Billie Joe nodded, nervously scraping his teeth against his lip.
"Try not to worry too much, Bill. It's more than likely just a travel bug."
"That's what I keep saying," came a sleepy Australian voice from under the duvet, "When I was in Laos I had the shits constantly for about a week... both ends, in fact. Nothing wrong with me."
"Thanks Ricky," smirked Amber, sitting up and rubbing her eyes. "We'll bear that in mind."

"We have something else we need to announce too," said Mike, a little unsteady on his feet as he slid off the mattress and stretched, "About Jason."
"Jason has an announcement?" Rob enquired, lifting an eyebrow.
Jason looked down, an embarrassed smile creeping onto his face.
"We think its about time our second guitarist became a regular fixture," Mike smiled, "It's only been about ten years, after all."
"Sound alright to you?" Billie Joe asked, looking in Rob's direction.
Rob shrugged, smiling.
"You guys are the boss. And he's less trouble than you are. Sounds like its press conference time."
Billie Joe groaned.
"Can't we just stick an announcement on the web site?"
"Good luck with that one... I'm not expecting that spending almost two weeks on a deserted island has made you any more computer literate, Billie Joe."
"Well, I wasn't planning on doing it personally."
Jack snorted.
"I knew when we got into the real world Billie would start throwing out diva demands. I mean, damn, I'm sure lucky I don't have to get paid a fucking mint to sit and answer a few questions."
"Now, now, Jack. I thought we'd put our differences behind us... "
"You know, you're right. In fact... chuck me some eyeliner and a bucket of hair dye and I'll do it for you. Maybe throw in some glittery lip gloss for good measure."
"Fuck off."

Rob held up his hands, glancing between the pair with an amused smile.
"How is it that you didn't kill each other?" he joked, "And you're gonna have to expect that people are gonna have questions to ask. My first one being, who do I blame for this mother of all fuck-ups?"
"Tre," said Mike, without missing a beat, "He was late for the flight, if it wasn't for him, we wouldn't even have been in Cambodia at all. Plus, he isn't here to defend himself."
"Jack was the one that got us high," Rick pointed out, "He led me astray. I'm only eighteen, you know."
"When I was eighteen, I was high ninety-eight percent of the time," Billie Joe told him, "We've been relatively straight-edge in recent years, Rick, so it's much more likely that you were the one leading us astray."
Rob laughed, as the argument escalated.
"I'm just happy you're back," he told them, with a smile, as he headed towards the door.

Early the next morning, the group piled onto the bus that had been arranged to take them all back to Phnom Penh, where they were each flying back out of after finally securing emergency passports from their respective embassies.

Billie Joe blinked a little in the hazy morning sun as he stood, with his hands in his pockets, watching the activity on the street with a mild amazement that hadn't yet left him since his return to the mainland. He watched Rob Cavallo and Bill Schneider animatedly discussing their flight arrangements and felt another rush of excitement in his stomach at the thought of seeing his family again, that made him bounce a little on his toes.

Stepping onto the bus, he slid into a seat next to Maggie, who was sleepily regarding her flight itinerary with an expression of mild confusion.
"Okay?" he enquired.
"What's the time difference? Why am I landing before I'm taking off?"
Billie Joe smiled, taking the papers from her hands and squinting at them.
"Fuck if I know," he remarked, after a second, "But don't complain about it. You can't get a flight much shorter than that."
Maggie smiled, leaning back in her seat and looking out of the window as the scenery started to slowly roll by.
"Looking forward to getting home?" she asked him, after a moment of silence.
"I don't know that I can even wait now," he replied, "When I woke up this morning I was practically shaking with desperation."
Maggie smiled, in understanding.
"You talked to your boys?"
"Yeah, last night. It was amazing. You can't imagine how much I've missed them, and I didn't think anything could make me miss them more than that... but then Joey came on the line and... God, it was... "
Maggie listened to him choke on his words, before he swallowed them with silence, and she turned back to him.
"Bill... you... aren't gonna do anything stupid when you get back home are you?"
"Like what?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Like... telling Adrienne what happened... with you and me."

Billie Joe looked down at his hands. He had tried to put his guilt over the situation with Maggie out of his mind, because all it did was cause him turmoil. He had always sworn to be open and honest with Adrienne and he never wanted to be anything else but, at the same time, he didn't think he could bear to put her through any more pain.

"Don't," said Maggie, earnestly, reading his anguished expression, "Please, Billie. There's nothing that it can achieve. You love her, and I know that. We just... we needed each other and we were both there and... we got carried away. It's not the same as you and Adrienne. You guys... you have a marriage, a family... you're in love. No good can come from hurting her with this."
Billie Joe nodded, before answering, hoarsely.
"I just... don't wanna pretend that it never happened."

Maggie took a deep breath, avoiding his eyes when she spoke.
"You don't have to pretend it didn't happen. Let's just say... it's something that will always be between you and me. No one else has to know, because no one else will understand. What matters is, you love your wife, and someday I'll have that too... with someone else."

Billie Joe nodded again, swallowing down his emotion, before he reached over and covered Maggie's fingers with his own.
"I know you will," he told her, softly.

Rick gazed around himself in amazement as he followed the others into departures, the Christmas lights that adorned the shop windows surprising him the most. Since when was it Christmas? His eyes flicked from person to person before he finally forced himself to focus on the list of departing flights, which irritated him by continually changing.

"Was this always this complicated?" he asked Mike, impatiently, "I'm starting to wish I was just thrown into the air ambo like Tre was."
Mike grinned.
"You're going to Sydney, right? Flight leaves in twenty minutes... Gate forty-seven. See?"
Rick squinted.
"Oh... beaut. When's yours?"
"Not for a couple hours. I'm gonna go get some coffee or something while we wait. Looks like you're up first, buddy."
"Can't believe I'm really going, to be honest," Rick told him, wistfully, "Gonna be weird not having you guys around all the time."
"Tell me about it," Mike agreed, "But don't worry. We'll see you again sometime."
"Too right, mate. There are like a thousand islands around this part of the world, they can't all be run by a bunch of mad farmhands, right? We can just work our way round."
Mike laughed.
"Or we can just come crash on your floor next time we're in Australia."
"That'll be fine too," smiled Rick, glancing over to his right, where Jason and Lara were holding each other as they voiced their emotional goodbyes. He averted his eyes again, granting them their privacy.

"You damn well better come visit me sometime," Lara murmured into Jason's collar, gripping him harder around the waist as her tears soaked into the material of his shirt.
"I will," he told her, sincerely, pulling away so that he could look her in the eye, "I promise... I couldn't... I have to."

He lifted a hand to cup her cheek, letting his eyes wander down her tear-stained face and feeling his own breath shake under the weight of his emotion.
"You know... I couldn't have gotten through this without you, Lara," he whispered, "You're so... you're just... everything I need."
Lara nodded, letting another little sob out of her lungs as she gripped his hand, tightly.
"I'm so sorry I was such a bitch to you."
Jason let out a laugh through his tears.
"Looking back, it's actually kind of funny. You're such a jackass."

Lara smiled, raising her hands to his face as she leant in and kissed him, deeply, before pulling back and resting her forehead against his, feeling his breath against her lips.
Jason sighed.
"I love you."

He hadn't planned on the words coming out of his mouth, but they seemed hell-bent on it anyway, and once they had, he was glad of it. Lara's eyes widened momentarily, before she pressed her lips back against his, wrapping her arms tighter around his body as she broke their kiss just long enough to whisper his words back to him, before their lips met again.

Mike grinned as Amber hugged him tightly, before pulling back and smiling, her hands resting on his shoulders.
"Hope you don't get molested by teenagers at the other end," she told him, teasingly.
"Actually... this is one occasion I wouldn't mind. I kinda missed getting molested."
Amber grinned.
"I wouldn't say that too loudly, Mikey... but I hope you guys have a good flight... and I hope the engines work this time."
"Don't even joke about that."
Amber laughed.
"It's been pretty weird, huh?" she said, after a moment's silence, "The way we all came together."
Mike nodded, smiling.
"Yeah. Wouldn't wanna do it again. Especially the last part. But for some reason, I don't regret meeting up with you guys. I think I learned a lot."
"Me too. And we did have a few good times along the way. I'll miss our chats."
Mike nodded, smiling as he hugged her again.
"You told Jack, yet?"
Amber laid her hand over her stomach.
"No... I need to get checked out when I get home... make sure everything is okay, I suppose."
"Are you scared of what he'll say?"
"Of course. It's a big deal. I just hope we're ready for it."
"He loves you."
"I love him."

Mike smiled.
"Well, you'd better stay in touch, cause we're gonna need updates."
Amber smiled.
"How do I do that? Apparently there are a lot of girls trying to get hold of Mike Dirnt, you know."
Mike smirked in response, fishing a pen out of the back pocket of his jeans, before scrawling his e-mail across the back of her hand.
"No excuses," he smiled.

"Would passenger Taylor, the last remaining passenger for flight QA425 for Sydney, please make his way to Gate Forty-Seven."

"Uh... Rick?" Billie Joe enquired, leaning forwards, "Isn't that your flight, man?"
Rick turned to Billie Joe in surprise.
"Shit! It is! Actually, I'm passenger Taylor. I sorta forgot I had a last name."

Rick scrambled to pick up his backpack amongst the giggles of the onlookers, hugging them all quickly before turning back to Billie Joe, who was holding out his forgotten cup of coffee.

"Thanks, mate," said Rick, taking it, before pulling Billie into a one-armed hug, hoping he knew that holding his coffee wasn't the only thing he wanted to thank him for.
"No problem," Billie Joe replied, "Good luck back home, man."
Rick nodded, nervously, glancing down at his shoes.
"Let me know how it goes, right?" Billie Joe smiled, "And don't worry. You know they'll be stoked to have you back for Christmas."
"I hope so," Rick smiled, as Maggie grabbed him round the middle and kissed his cheek, "I'll miss you guys."
"We'll miss you too," she told him, sounding a little tearful, as he made his way towards his departure gate, offering them a final wave as he disappeared through the doors.

"I think it is my flight next," said Mia, quietly, as she looked up at the departures. "I had better leave to find my gate."
Maggie nodded, reaching out to hug her quickly when it became obvious that nobody else was prepared to say anything.
"Have a safe trip," she told her.
Mia nodded, gratefully.
"You guys know I'm sorry for everything," she said, turning to them, "I don't know if that matters now but I want to say anyway."
Amber nodded.
"I know," she said, softly.
Mia turned to Billie Joe and Mike, who were looking at their shoes.
"I hope that Tre is okay," she told them, sincerely, "And when you see him... please tell him that I am sorry too."
"Sure," Mike nodded, knowing that to Tre, it probably wouldn't make much difference, "We'll tell him."

Mia managed a smile, before picking up her bags and heading toward the door. After she had gone, Billie Joe turned to Maggie, who stood by his side.
"I still can't believe you forgave her."
"Well, you know. Life's short, et cetera."
He smiled.
"Want to come grab something to eat?"
"Can't. Need to catch my plane."
"Already?"
"Yep," she sighed, trying to hold herself together as best she could. She hated airport goodbyes.

Amber looked tearful as she wrapped Maggie into a tight hug.
"Give me a call whenever you want to come visit me, honey," she told her.
"I will," Maggie promised, "I always wanted to come to England. Especially now, after it kind of saved my skin."
Amber smiled, as Maggie turned and hugged each of them, saving Billie Joe for last.
"This better not be the last thing I ever see of you," he muttered.
Maggie smiled, forcing back her tears.
"It won't be."
"I'm going to have to make you promise."
"Promise."

Billie Joe nodded, kissing her cheek quickly before she wiped at her eyes and hoisted her backpack onto her shoulder.
"I'll call you guys sometime," she told them, her voice a little shaky.
"Definitely do that," Jack told her.
"And give my love to Tre."
"We will."
Maggie nodded, taking a deep breath as she left them, her desperation to get home suddenly conflicting with how much she missed them all already. She had met a lot of people on her travels, and she knew that people always said they would keep in touch, even though they hardly ever did. But she meant it this time, and she hoped that they did too.

For Jason, Mike and Billie Joe, the flight was a strange one. There was no joking around, no complaints about the food or the coffee and, most noticeably, no Tre. Tre's always had been a presence that was most definitely felt and, without him, they all felt empty.

Stepping off the plane and into arrivals at San Francisco International, Billie Joe felt his heart begin to race. He could already hear the kind of crowd noise he was used to walking on stage to and he had never experienced that kind of reception at an airport before. He felt an overwhelming rush of adoration for his fans, but it couldn't surpass the feeling of desperation he had in his stomach, just for seeing his family again.

"You want us to get rid of the press and the fans?" one of the airport security officials asked them, as they were ushered through customs.

Billie Joe exchanged a glance of understanding with Jason and Mike before answering.
"No," he said, "We'll stop and meet the fans."
"But no interviews," Rob added, and they nodded in agreement.

As they turned the corner, the noise that erupted from the crowd that lined the side of the room took their breath away, and the bandmates exchanged grins as the security struggled with holding the fans behind the barriers.

Mike smiled, as he walked towards them, allowing himself to be pulled into the collection of outstretched hands, as he was hugged by what felt like three hundred people in every direction, all at the same time.

Jason grinned, extracting himself from the arms of one girl, so that he could shake the hand of another. He had never felt this appreciated before, and he had a feeling it was going to take some getting used to.

"Did you really rescue them?" came a voice, cutting above the others, and he searched for its source for a moment before his eyes settled on a young guy to his left.
"I got help," he nodded, "But it was the British Embassy that rescued them in the end."
"We thought you were dead," came the voice of a tearful girl, as she reached out to grip his arm.
"Sorry we scared y'all," Jason smiled, warmly, and she smiled back.

"Where's Tre?!" came a sudden, frantic cry, enlightening them on the cause of most of the uproar.
"He's in hospital here in San Francisco," Mike told them, holding up his hands in an attempt to calm their panic, "But don't worry... he's okay."

"What's wrong with him?"
"When'll he be back?"
"Tell him we love him!"

"I will," Mike promised, feeling a rush of emotion as he pulled away from their grasp, "He'll be back soon. We love you guys, you're the best fucking fans in the world."
"Damn right," muttered Billie Joe, with a smile, as he felt his shirt tear, "Hey... watch it dudes, I'm kind of fragile right now..."

Billie Joe smiled, as they made their way down the room, turning to blow his fans kisses before they went on their way, and Mike threw an arm over his shoulders as they walked past the line of flashing cameras. He was vaguely aware that he must look like several kinds of shit, but in his exhausted, jet-lagged state, he no longer cared.

He was so busy taking in the comforting familiarity of the SFO International Terminal, that he didn't even see her until she was upon him, her arms going around his neck and her whole weight leaning into him as she pressed her body against his with a force and emotion that took the breath right out of his lungs.

He dropped his bags to the floor and wrapped her in his arms, feeling her shake with her tears of love and relief as he buried his face into her hair. She smelled like home. Listening to her cry made him ache, and he hadn't even realised that he was sobbing until he tried to speak.

"Adie... I'm sorry," he choked out, raising his head just as she smacked him on the arm.
"So you should be," she told him, tearfully, as she took his wet face in her hands and kissed him with a passion that stole his breath.

Holding him again, feeling him return her kisses, she didn't think she'd ever be able to let him go. And as their kiss deepened, she knew that the pictures would be splashed over the Internet in a matter of hours and she had never cared less.

He cupped her face in his hands as they broke off, biting down on his lip in an attempt to halt his tears. He moved his thumb to wipe at the tracks of mascara that stained her cheeks, marvelling at the way she could look so beautiful even when she officially looked like a heap of shit.

"God, I fucking missed you," he stated, not even realising how much he had until right then.
"I thought you were... they said you were... they said they stopped looking!"

Billie Joe nodded, tearfully. He couldn't bear that she had been through so much worry and heartache.
"I'm so sorry, Adie."
"You're safe. That's all that matters. I can't believe I almost lost you, Bill... I love you... so much, you have no idea..."
"I love you, too," he whispered, smiling as she threaded her fingers into his hair.
"I know," he said, "It's crappy."
She giggled through her tears.
"You know I always liked you with dreadlocks," she teased.
"And at least this way, we match."

Adrienne nodded, running her hands from his hair down his face; as if unable to believe it was really his skin that she was touching.
"You lost a lot of weight," she told him.
"I know. There wasn't much to eat. The past few days we didn't eat a thing... since they came and... Adie, it was... it was fucking hell. I thought they were gonna..."

Adrienne closed her eyes, as she touched her nose to his.
"They didn't. You're home now. And I'm gonna take care of you."
Billie Joe smiled.
"That sounds good. I think you're gonna have to be gentle with me for a while."

Adrienne raised an eyebrow, smiling, as she fiddled with the collar of his shirt.
"I'm not making any promises," she muttered, and he laughed as he kissed her again.

"Daddy?!"

He broke their kiss, spinning around just in time to see two colourful blurs fly towards him and affix themselves to his sides. He let out a strangled sob, as he dropped onto one knee and pulled them both into a tight hug.

Adrienne grinned at the sight of them, before turning and running off to greet Mike and Jason, leaving Billie Joe with their sons.

"God, I missed you guys," Billie Joe mumbled into Jakob's hair.
"We've missed you, too," said Joey, causing him to gag slightly as his arms tightened their grip around his neck.

He squeezed them both tightly, as relief flowed through him.
"You know I love you both heaps," he sighed.
"We love you, too," said Jakob, simply, and Billie grinned, before he became suddenly aware of the watching press and pulled back, after kissing both boys.
"Let's go home, right?" he asked them, smiling at their excited exclamations as he took both their hands and looked up as Adrienne came back towards them, squeezing his shoulder a little as they went on their way.

"Dad, what was it like on the island?" Joey asked him.
"Pretty tough, man."
"Where's Tre?" Jakob asked, his eyes wide, "I heard he got sick!"
"He is sick. He got bit by a caterpillar."
"Was it hairy?"
"Yeah."
"You shouldn't touch hairy caterpillars," Joey told him, matter-of-factly, "Everyone knows that."
Billie Joe laughed.
"Well, you can tell that to your Uncle Tre when you see him."
"He's brave," Jakob reminded his brother, "He'd touch anything... even a rattlesnake or a tarantula. Remember when we were in San Diego... he touched a jellyfish... and he got stung five times!"
"That isn't brave, that's just stupid," Joey pointed out, and Adrienne laughed.

"Did you have to make a fire?" Jakob asked, dismissing his brother's remark.
"Sure, every night."
"Like camping?"
"Kind of... only not so much fun."
"Did you have to kill stuff?"
"I killed a fish," Billie Joe volunteered and, after noticing their poor attempts to look impressed, he added, "With a spear."
"Awesome! Was it gross?"
He laughed a little.
"Yeah, it was pretty gross."

Adrienne grinned as the boys skipped ahead and took her husbands hand, interlocking their fingers as he dipped his head and kissed her cheek.

"I always knew he'd come back," said Joey, smugly, smiling up at his mother, "I was never really worried."
"Me either," said Jakob confidently, taking hold of the hem of Billie Joe's shirt and gripping it in a tightly balled fist. "... He always comes back."