A Mass Hysteria In The Modern World

Adrienne's POV.

I drove to Billie's house, thinking that I could stay there until he got here so I could have a chat with him some more. I walked into the house, not bothering to knock on the door. I didn't see anybody here, so I walked up the staircase and into the hallway with the bathrooms and the bedrooms. I went to every bedroom, trying to find his and Alyssa's. I was a very nosey person. I opened one door and I saw a few photographs on the walls of him and her and some of their daughter growing up and some of all three of them and some of the whole band and everybody else in it. The sight of the pictures sickened me, so I laid on the bed. I laid there for a good half an hour before I got bored with that and went downstairs.

When I walked back into the main part of the house, I saw the girl, Tre, Billie, Abby, and Alyssa sitting in the living room.

"So you don't have anything dangerous, Abby?" The girl asked.

Abby shook her head. "I don't have anything." She let out a breath of relief and I saw Billie hug her.

"What about the drugs?" Tre asked, and looked at Alyssa.

"They're getting her some professional help for the addiction next week," she said, and slowly began to smile.

I accidentally ran into the wall, causing a picture hanging on a nail to fall off and shatter onto the floor. All their heads shot up at me: I received a few glares and a few confused faces. The confused ones were from the couple that I didn't see when I walked in here; Mike with some girl who had eyeliner rimmed eyes, just like Billie's, and blond hair on top with black hair underneath and she was just as skinny as Mike.

"What are you doing here, really," Billie said, standing up and walking over to me. I saw Alyssa get a look of worry on her face and pull her legs up onto the couch.

"I came here, hoping to have a word with you," I said, standing up.

"I told you Adrienne, you don't mean shit to me and you never will!" Billie began to yell.

I laughed in his face. "So your little slut of a wife who's most likely going to have another miscarriage means more to you than me?"

Billie's jaw clenched and I saw his hands curl up into fists. "Alyssa means everything to me. She's not a slut, thank you very much. And she won't have another one. I won't let it happen."

I saw the girl stand up and walk towards me. She looked intimidating, but not enough to scare me away. I walked past Billie and up in front of the girl.

"Who the hell are you exactly?" I asked her.

"You don't want to know, Adrienne," she told me. She then grabbed me by the shoulders and backed me up against the wall, causing my head to hit it. "But say something like that about Alyssa ever again... and you'll wish you hadn't."

"Oh! That she's a slut, she's going to have another miscarriage, that Billie doesn't love her, and that she shouldn't even exist? You think you can do something about that?"

The girl didn't respond, but instead I received a punch to the face and I fell to the floor, landing on my back. I felt weight on top of my stomach and I suddenly had blows to the face. I could feel my nose bleeding and my jaw begin to bruise.

"Get off of me!" I yelled, trying to pry her off.

"Not until you get what you deserve!" She yelled and kept punching me. Her fists met my face even slower and she eventually stopped after a few minutes. I felt everybody's eyes on me as I stood up. The girl was breathing heavily and still had her hands in fists.

"Go to hell," I said with blood dripping into my hand and ran out the door.

Marty's POV.

I shrugged my shoulders and walked back to everybody in the living room, who were all shocked to see a sight like that.

"What? She deserved it," I said and sat down in between Tre and Alyssa.

"She won't be coming back here," I whispered to Alyssa and smiled a little. She looked over and smiled at me back then put her head on my shoulder.

"Billie..." Mike mumbled, staring at the floor.

"Yes, Mike?"

"...We go on tour in three days, are you sure you're up for it?" Mike asked. Billie stared at Alyssa and she moved her eyes to the floor, still leaning on my shoulder.

Billie took a deep breath and let out a long sigh. "Yes, I'm sure."

The next day. Randi's POV.

Finally everything was back to normal again. I didn't have the full story on what exactly happened with Alice and Abby, but I knew the main parts and that was good enough for me to get by. Everybody was back to normal, besides the fact that Abby's first day of professional help was today and she would be coming home in an hour or two. I sat bored in the living room and tried to think of anything to do. Mike was in the kitchen getting food; he was always eating something.

"Mike! I'm going to call Tre and Marty to come over!" I yelled as I walked across the living room to the table where the phone sat.

"What for?!" He yelled back with a muffled voice. I could tell that he was eating.

"Just do to something!"

I dailed their house number and let it ring five times before hanging up. I was confused so I texted Marty:

"Why won't you answer your phone? It rang five times." I texted and let it send. A few minutes later my phone vibrated again and I flipped it open.

"I'm srry, I herd it ring tho... wht do u need?"

"What's going on?"

"Wat r u talkin bout?"

"Are you in the middle of sex?"

"Wat makes u thnk that?"

"...because your grammar is horrible and that's not something you'd normally do. Nevermind. Lol."

She didn't text back and I knew I was right. I laughed to myself and I shoved my face in the pillow on the couch, hoping to get some sleep.

Two days later. Billie's POV. The airport.

"I'll call you and check up on everything, okay?" I told Alyssa, pushing a piece of her hair behind her ear. She closed her eyes and a tear came out and rolled down her face. I felt it on my finger tips and I brushed it away. She looked up at me and smiled. "You can handle this. You're strong, remember?"

"I know, Billie. I just don't know how to handle Abby's management sessions, and I'm scared she's going to get into the medicine cabinet," she said and looked down at her stomach and put her hand on it. "And about our baby..."

"You've got to trust her. It's the only thing we can do now," I said and kissed her forehead then placed my hand on her stomach too. "And as for the baby, you've done this before. You'll be just fine. I'm out for a month and I'll be back for two days. I have to go now, I'm sorry." I kissed her and I slowly let her go, going to the other side of the gate. Tre and Marty, and Mike and Randi had already said their good-byes, because they were short and easy. Them two, Jason White, Jason Freese, Ronnie, and Jeff had been waiting for me for almost two minutes... and they wern't complaining surprisingly.

The next week. Alyssa's POV.

"Hey!" I greeted my daughter when she came into the kitchen. I was making some breakfast for the both of us. "Sleep well?"

"Yeah," she said still sounding a bit sleepy. Abby smiled and sat on the counter. "What are you making?"

"Your favorite," I smiled.

"French Toast?!" She squealed and grabbed plates from the cabinet and the syrup immediately. Abby set the two plates out in front of me on the other side of the stove. I laughed and I placed two slices of bread on her plate and cut them in half with the spatula.

"Mom!" She whined. "Only two?!"

"You'll get more once you finish those two," I said and put two on mine also. I turned the stove off for now and joined my daugher for dinner.

"When does dad get home?" She asked, looking at the calendar on the table. I took a drink of my milk and sat it back down.

"Three weeks."

"Why does he always have to be gone for so long?"

"It's his job, honey. He's been doing it even before we met."

"And how long have you been married?"

"Fourteen years."

"Wow," she said and took a bite of her breakfast. "I expected it to be much shorter."

"You thought we had you before we got married?" Abby nodded her head.

"Well, we didn't. It was a little after we got married though." She nodded he head as she listened to me talk about her dad and I.

"How did you meet?" Abby asked me.

"He ran into me when we were walking past eachother one day. I was leaving Starbucks and he was taking a walk," I said and then paused, trying to remember that day. "He had knocked everything out of my hands and got my Starbucks all over my Operation Ivy tee."

"You had an Op. Ivy T-Shirt?!" Abby squealed. I laughed and nodded my head. "That's so awesome! I didn't know you were into them."

"I saw them play at Gilman the week before I met your dad. See, I wasn't living here. I had lived in two states before California. But I was in Oakland for various reasons."

"What kind of reasons, mom?"

I stood up and put my plate in the dish washer and she did the same after me. I put the left overs in the fridge.

"Reasons that don't need to be told, honey. It's a long story."

"Does dad know?"

"Yes, Abby," I said and walked upstairs into Billie and I's bedroom, getting normal clothes out of the closet. She followed close behind me.

"Then why can't I know?"

"Because you're our daughter. You're not in this relationship."

"That doesn't make a difference!"

"Abby, please. It's not something I like to talk about, okay?"

"Then why did you tell dad?"

I went back downstairs and changed into my normal clothes and put my pajama's in the washing mashine then turned it on.

"Abby, just drop it. Please."

"But, mom-!"

"I said drop it or you're grounded."

She sighed sarcastically and rolled her eyes. "You're so mean to me," Abby said and stomped upstairs. I had the urge to go upstairs and tell her that if I was mean to her that she would still be out on the streets with Christian. But she'd probably get me back by saying that he was her brother and that they can take care of eachother.

"Whatever," I sighed and laid back on the couch.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

It was late at night and Abby was already upstairs in her room. I sat in Billie and I's bed and watched TV. My favorite show, Medium, was on but the finale was coming next week and I was upset that it was ending. After the show was over they previewed the commercial for the upcoming finale and I began to tear up as my phone rang. It was Billie.

"Hey," I said with tears in my voice.

"What's wrong?!" He asked.

"My show is ending next week," I laughed.

"My God, you scared the shit out of me!" Billie yelled.

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to," I said. "Oh, guess what."

"What?"

"Abby and I almost had a fight this morning," I sighed. "She wanted to know why I was in California when I met you."

Billie was silent.

"Hey, don't get mad. Please," I begged him.

"I'm not mad," he told me. "I promise."

"Then why were you quiet?"

"I was just thinking about what that was because I forget."

I sighed. "Remember the whole thing with Sam?"

"Oh!" Billie said, remembering everything now. "Now I remember, what a jackass."

I laughed. "Billie! Don't say that."

"I'm never going to forgive him Lyssa. You know that."

"I know," I sighed. There was an awkward silence between the two of us.

"So how is everybody?" I asked.

"Everything's going great. We just got back to the bus. We're all wiped out."

"Then go to bed, I'll let you go," I said.

"No, no. It's fine. I've still got a few more minutes."

Billie and I were quiet again and I had ran out of things to talk about. I heard Billie laugh to himself.

"What's so funny?" I asked.

"This girl jumped on stage tonight and attacked Tre," he said laughing. I laughed too.

"Your fans are insane," I said. "Well, only some of them."

"They're awesome!" Billie said. I heard him lay down on his bunk and close the certain that was next to it, blocking out the moonlight that would come in.

"Just promise me Billie, that you won't have any fans backstage or on the bus..."

"Lyssa, you don't trust me?"

"I do, I do. I just get nervous, you know?" I asked quietly.

"I know. I get nervous sometimes too."

"You know there isn't any guy for me to have an affair with," I laughed. Billie laughed too, trying to bring the conversation back to a happy one.

"And also," I started. "Don't let any fan backstage in general. There's still Tre and Mike that are married. That goes for the Jason's, Ronnie, the other Mike, and Jeff too."

Billie laughed. "That's a lot of people," he said.

"I know. I just care about you all," I yawned. "Well I'm beat, call me tomorrow okay?"

"You know I always do," he said. "I love you. Goodnight."

"Night Beej, I love you too." I hung up the phone and put it on the night stand next to the bed.

A month later. The 2 day break.

Marty and I studied our wedding pictures long and hard, both smiling and laughing at things here and there.

"I remember that..." She said, reminicing with a smile on her face.

"What is it?" I asked. She leaned on my shoulder nad put the picture in front for the both of us to see. I laughed.

"That was when you got cake in my eye," I said still laughing.

"Oh! This one's good," I smiled and handed it to her. She laughed and her face went red.

"When you couldn't find the gardar s oyou lifted up my dress and went under it and searched for it," she said, blushing.

"It took me forever..." I said with a smile. Marty his my arm.

"Bullshit," she said and smiled back.

"Your dad wanted to kill me right then and there."

"Well, it doesn't help that he is against your political views," she told me. I shrugged.

"Oh! Look at this one..." She said. "It's Alyssa and Alice." Marty smiled.

"That's cute," I said. "That one is when your dress about fell when you threw the boquet," I laughed.

"I knew I should have worn straps," she mumbled. "But on the bright side, it ended up hitting Alyssa in the head."

We both laughed and sat the table in front of us. I pulled her into my arms then backwards so she'd be laying on my chest. I kissed her head then pulled the spare blankets out from the big box that was at the end of the couch. I put at least two over us and started the fire that was, unfortunately, remote controlled. My beautiful wife and I laid like that until 3:00AM, just talking and holding eachother close as time went by. I heard her yawn and decided to let her sleep.

"I love you," I whispered and kissed her head. She rolled over and cuddled into me some more.

"I love you too," she said and quickly fell asleep as I rubbed her head.

"Forever," I whispered and gave her one last kiss before turning the lamp off.