My Way Home Is Through You

The bus was extremely quiet when Ray and Anna entered moments later. Bob lay on the couch with his iPod and Mikey sat yawning at the table, a steaming cup of coffee in his hands. Frank and Gerard were nowhere to be seen.

Not that this surprised Ray. Gerard was notorious for staying up later than normal after a show, and Frank had been on such a high from the combination of adrenaline and sugar that Ray felt sure he had crashed hard some time in the wee hours of the morning. Knowing Frank, he would sleep most of the day.

Anna charged into the living area and hopped up on the couch beside Bob, startling him slightly.

"Anna!" Bob exclaimed. "What's up, sweetie?" He pulled the iPod's earbuds out of his ears as Ray followed behind the little girl.

"Me!" she said happily, smiling at the drummer.

"I see that!" Bob grinned at her. "How are you this morning?"

"Good!" she giggled.

"Whoa," Mikey said as he got a look at Anna. "Tiny Toro!" He continued to sip his coffee. Anna simply beamed at him.

Within a quarter of an hour, the four of them were seated around the table, quietly slurping down bowls of cereal. Mikey had gone through two more cups of coffee, Ray noticed.

"Late night, huh?" he asked his friend.

Mikey nodded. "You know how Frank gets after the last show. He's like a two-year-old who's had too much ice cream." Ray laughed.

"I'm glad I missed that," he said.

"You're not kidding," groaned Gerard as he stumbled sleepily from the bunk area. His hair was disheveled and his dark green pajamas were wrinkled. One pant leg was hiked up above his knee and he was missing a sock, giving him a look of utter silliness. Ray grinned and glanced at his daughter, who seemed supremely amused at the singer's appearance.

As Gerard slid into the seat beside them, Mikey hastily poured his older brother a cup of coffee. With a nod of thanks, Gerard took several large gulps, then opened his eyes wide.

"Good morning, everyone!" he said. The others laughed as he drained the rest of the cup.

"Any plans for today?" Mikey asked. "We're not heading home until tomorrow, so we've got a whole day and night to ourselves in the city."

Gerard shrugged. "I doubt we'll see Frank before mid-afternoon. He went out cold at about 5:30 this morning. It wasn't pretty." Starting in on a second cup of coffee, he said, "If you guys want to go off on your own, that's cool. 'Cause I don't have any ideas myself."

"Actually," Ray began, "I was hoping you guys could help us find something to do." He looked at Anna for a moment, who was busy playing with her spoon. "You know, kid-friendly."

“Ooh, an outing,” said Bob with a devilish grin.

”Kid-friendly,” Ray repeated loudly, casting a stern look toward his friend. Bob simply laughed.

“There’s the public library,” Gerard said weakly. Ray wrinkled his nose.

“No way,” he said. “She’s too little for that. Besides, it’s no fun.”

Gerard shrugged. “Times Square?”

“Oh yeah,” Bob said, rolling his eyes. “Let’s hike around the MTV building with a four-year-old who bears an uncanny resemblance to Ray, they’ll have a field day with that.”

Ray turned his worried gaze toward his daughter. She had abandoned the spoon and was now listening to them intently.

“Well, I don’t know!” Gerard said in exasperation. “Why the hell are you asking me? I just woke up, I won’t be smart for at least another hour or so!” They all chuckled at that.

"They have those boat things in the park," said Bob.

After a moment's hesitation, Ray shook his head wearily. "Please, God, no more water activities."

“What about FAO Schwarz?” Mikey suggested.

“The giant toy store?” Ray said uncertainly.

“Frank will kill us if we go there without him,” murmured Gerard as he lifted his third cup of coffee to his lips.

Ray still looked doubtful. “I don’t know, Mike...” he began.

But it was too late. Anna had heard the magic words.

“Toy store?” Her little voice sounded so hopeful. “Can we go? Daddy, please can we go?”

And when Ray looked back down at her, he saw that look again. The one that tugged at his heartstrings and made it impossible for him to deny her anything.

Giving in with a smile, he said, “Sure, baby. We can go.”