No One Knows

When Tre arrived at the practice room, Billie Joe and Mike were sitting side by side on the couch, guitar and bass in hand, and Billie Joe was teaching him the new song he had written the week before. They looked up as Tre entered.

"Hey, Man," said Mike, smiling, "Thanks for turning up. You've saved our lives, we really need to practice for Wednesday and Al's being fuck all help."

Tre dropped the leads he'd picked up from Billie Joe's house onto the floor.

"Hey, no problem," he said, with a small shrug.

"Thanks for picking up the spare leads too," said Billie Joe, "I don't know what's up with the one I brought but its basically fucked."
"Ah, its okay," said Tre, "I got talking to your new lodger."

Billie Joe's eyes darkened,
"John?" he asked, doubtfully, "Ugh. Sorry, Man. Was he an ass to you?"
"No, Jessie," said Tre,
"Oh... Jessie," said Billie Joe, "Was she an ass to you?"
"No," said Tre, "We talked for a bit. She told me you guys weren't exactly getting on. I don't get what the problem is. I thought she was really cute."

Billie Joe stopped strumming his guitar and looked up.

"Don't let her fool you," he said, "She might look cute enough on the outside but believe me... she isn't."
Mike turned to Tre, and said mock-conspiratorially.

"It's best not to get him started on this subject, because it takes him a while to wind down afterwards."

Tre laughed.

"Billie, what the fuck's she done to you, man? She seemed okay. I think you just got off on the wrong foot."

Billie Joe shook his head, as he went about tuning his E string.

"It's a clash of personalities," he said. "And opinions. It's a general clashing of two people."
"How old is she?" Tre asked.
"Sixteen."

He smiled cheekily.

"Does she... have a boyfriend that you know of?"
"Don't even fucking think about it Tre," said Billie Joe flatly, without looking up.

Mike started laughing. Tre grinned.

"Why aren't I allowed to think about it?"
"Because things do not need to get any more complicated than they are already. She's out of bounds. Okay?"
"What are you, her father?"
"No, but that's another point. Her father is a total shit. So if I were you, I wouldn't lay one finger on her, because he would definitely not be impressed, and he'd possibly come after you with a .45."

Tre's eyes widened.

"And this guy's dating your mother?"
"Like I said," said Mike, "It's best not to get him started..."

Billie sighed as he finished tuning his guitar.

"Come on guys, lets get going," he said, "Because we really have to kick ass on Wednesday night."

*** *** ***

On Monday, Jessie brought home her school report card, and it wasn't good. She walked home as slowly as possible, holding it between her hands and trying to figure out what she could do about it. It wasn't terrible, but it looked as though she hadn't got away with skipping as much school as she thought she had, and she knew that it wasn't going to be anywhere near good enough for her Dad.

She thought about just not giving it to him, and forging his signature on the receipt slip, but she didn't even want to think about what he'd do if he ever found out about that. She eventually decided that the safest option was just to face up to it and get what was coming to her.

Ollie's car wasn't on the driveway when she got back, which she was relieved about because she really didn't want her to be around to hear this. Her relief dissipated pretty quickly when she got in the house and noticed the empty bottles in the kitchen, and heard the slight slur of her father's words as he greeted her. This wasn't a good time. She slipped past him towards the stairs to Annie's room, but he noticed the report in her hands, and asked what it was.

"Just something for school," she shrugged, trying to sound as nonchalant as possible.

It didn't work.

"Let me see."
"There's nothing to see, Dad."
"Jessie, let me fucking see."

She swallowed. He wasn't going to let up, and she knew that she had just made the whole thing worse. Looked like honesty really was the best policy sometimes. She passed it to him, with slightly trembling hands, and braced herself.

He stood in the hallway and studied it for what felt like the longest time. She felt like she was waiting for a jury to deliver her sentence. Then he looked up. She could see the anger in his eyes, and it made her weak at the knees.

"You were going to hide this from me," he said, darkly.
"I was... I was going to show you it, I was just waiting until... the right moment."
"Bullshit," he said, raising his voice, "You were never going to show me this. You were going to lie to me."
"I wasn't going to-"
"-You're lying to me again! You're always lying! You've turned into a lying little shit!"

She knew there was nothing she could do now. He'd gone past the point where she could answer back. Now it was about damage limitation.

"I'm sorry," she whispered.
"Sorry isn't fucking good enough!" he yelled, "What the hell happened, I thought you were supposed to be fucking smart?! God knows you seem to think you are!"
"I... "
"So when you tell me you've been at school, where have you really been?"
"I've been going to school, I've just been-"
"This says you haven't been going! And I'm not going to believe you because you're a fucking liar!"
"Dad, I have been going, but-"

He grabbed her by the shoulder and backed her against the door with enough force that it made her cry out.

"You've been going to that fucking music place, haven't you?"
"No! Only after school! I've only skipped the odd class-"
"Bullshit!" he shouted, his face so close to hers that she could see his pupils constrict in anger. "Don't talk to me like I'm a fool! You think you're so much smarter than everyone else, but you're thick as fucking shit to try and get this past me!"

She whimpered as the edge of the door dug into the bruise forming across her shoulder blade and blinked back the tears that were threatening to spill down her cheeks.

"You aren't going back to that store!" he said, angrily, lowering his voice to a hiss, "In fact, you aren't going anywhere. You're grounded."

The tears broke free and she squirmed under his grasp. He couldn't keep her in this house. She'd go crazy.

"Do you understand me?"

She nodded, miserably. He let go of her shoulder and she almost fell over from the relief. He kept his eyes fixed on her, breathing hard, before turning and walking into the living room, slamming the door behind him.

She took off up the stairs as fast as she could, ran into Annie's room, and threw herself down onto the bed, wondering if her father would be in any way affected if he knew how much she hated him right now.

When Billie Joe got home that night, the house was eerily quiet. He thought it was a little strange, seeing as it was still only early, but didn't give it more than a second's thought. He was in a good mood. He'd just come back from a great practice. His new songs sounded great, Al had not only turned up but played awesomely well, and he knew that Wednesday night was quite possibly going to be the best gig they'd ever played.

He set his guitar down in the hallway and headed into the darkened kitchen to get something to eat, singing softly to himself as he flicked on the light. Ollie was sitting at the kitchen table and she looked up with a start, making him jump.

"Jeez," he said, shaking his head, as he headed towards the fridge. "You scared the shit out of me. What are you doing sitting in the dark?"
"Oh... nothing really," she answered. Her voice sounded kind of strange. "How was... um... How was band practice?"
"Ok... " he said, from inside the fridge. "Well, good, actually. Really good."

He was a little surprised she asked. She usually avoided the subject seeing as it was the source of so much friction between them. When she didn't say anything more, he looked over at her. Her hands were folded together on the tabletop and she was staring down at them, biting her lip. He studied her closely for a moment.

"Mom... are you okay?"

She turned to look at him.

"Yeah, sweetie," she said, "Of course."

He took a step towards her.

"You look like you've been crying... "

She shook her head.

"Don't be silly, Billie Joe," she said, her voice cracking slightly, "Everything's fine."

He pulled a chair out from under the table and sat down. Both pairs of green eyes met for a moment, and it was long enough for Billie Joe to see that everything was definitely not fine.

"Mom," he said, "What's wrong?"

She sighed. She knew there was no point in pretending. He wasn't a kid anymore, after all, and he was smart. She wasn't going to be able to get anything past him.
"Don't worry, Billie," she said, "I just had a disagreement with John, that's all."

Billie Joe felt himself getting angry.

"What did he do?"
"He was just mad cause... he had some problems with Jessie and he had too much to drink and... "

She trailed off.

"Mom," said Billie Joe, leaning forward, "What did he do?"
"He didn't do anything," she said, quietly, "We just had a fight. People have fights all the time. It isn't unusual. Especially not in this house."
"Well, if it isn't a big deal and it isn't unusual, why are you looking so upset."

She was quiet for a moment.

"I just don't like fighting," she said, eventually.
"This is bullshit, Mom," said Billie Joe, angrily, "You're the one who took them into this house, when they had nowhere else to go. That guy owes you everything, the least he can do is treat you right. If he hurt you, I swear I will fucking-"
"He didn't," she said, quickly, "He wouldn't."
"Are you sure about that?"
"Of course," she replied, looking him in the eye, her voice shaking slightly, "I know him better than you do. He wouldn't."

She could tell Billie Joe didn't believe her, and she didn't want him asking any more questions, so she stood up quickly.

"I'm going to go take a bath," she said, "Don't leave a mess down here in the kitchen, okay?"
"Mom-"
"Billie, just leave it."

He watched her leave, then sat by himself in silence for a few minutes, his hands twisting in his lap with anxiety while he considered what she could be hiding. Then he stood up, pushing back his chair and headed out of the kitchen, before running up the stairs towards Annie's room.

"What do you want?" Jessie asked, wearily, when she saw him leaning against her door frame. She couldn't have been less in the mood for Billie Joe than she was right then. She hadn't left the room since her fight with her Dad earlier in the evening, and judging by the yelling she'd heard coming from downstairs not long ago, it still wasn't safe to come out.
He pushed his way past her into the room. He didn't feel he needed an invitation, it was his damn house after all.

"What's going on with our parents?" he asked, pointedly.

She frowned.

"Huh? What do you think?"
"I don't mean generally, I mean right now. Tonight. My Mom's been crying and I wanna know why."
"How the hell should I know why?"
"Well, if you've been up here the whole time, I thought you might have heard something."
"They had a fight," she said, "That's all I know."

He took a step closer to her.

"Why? What were they fighting about? What did he do to her?"

"Billie Joe... I really don't know. I couldn't hear much and I've just stayed in this room."

Billie Joe covered his mouth with his hand and started pacing back and forth.

"Is he violent?" he asked, shooting a glare in her direction.

She swallowed, looking down at the floor.

"No," she said. "Don't be fucking stupid"
"I'm serious, I need to know. Is he violent?"
"No!" she shouted, looking back up at him, angrily "I already told you!"

Billie Joe stopped pacing and put his hands in his hair, tugging at it in frustration. She'd never seen him like this. He was a nervous wreck.

"How the hell can I believe you?"
"If you weren't going to believe me, why did you come and ask me?!"

She had a point. He let out a shaky sigh, then walked towards her.

"You have to promise," he said, pointing a finger in her face, "You have to fucking promise me this. He's never hurt you?"

She shook her head, her eyes prickling with tears with the weight of the lie she was telling.

"You promise me, Jessie!" he said, raising his voice.
"I promise," she said, quietly.
"If he lays one finger on my Mom, I will fucking kill him. I hate him enough right now as it is. I won't have anyone in this house who hurts my Mom. And if I find out you've been lying to me, or covering for him and letting it happen... I swear to God, I'll-"
"Billie Joe" Jessie interrupted, desperately, "I get the idea."

He took a step back from her, breathing heavily.

"Okay," he said, running his hand through his messy hair.

She bit her lip. Despite her dislike for him, she felt horribly guilty. She knew he deserved to know what her Dad was like, he was living with him after all. She hated to admit her Dad was violent, even to herself, but she knew he was, and she knew it was unlikely he was only going to direct it at her. The thought of him lashing out at Ollie was almost painful.

But she couldn't do it. She just couldn't tell him the truth. Billie Joe didn't need any more reasons to hate her father and she didn't want to turn Ollie against him either. Partly because it would mean they'd be homeless, but mainly because she was starting to realize what a nice person she was, and that she might be exactly what her father needed. But the main reason she lied was through fear. It wasn't like she could trust Billie Joe not to say anything. She couldn't trust him as far as she could throw him. And once her father found out what she'd said... well, it didn't even bear thinking about.

She watched silently, as Billie Joe started towards the door and pulled it open. Before he left the room, he turned, his hand still on the doorknob, and looked at her. He felt confused, and anxious, and he had no idea whether he should believe a word Jessie said, but he didn't have a choice. He opened his mouth to say something, then stopped. What was there to say? He went through the door, and pulled it closed quietly behind him.

The moment he had gone, she let out a deep breath and sat down on the edge of the bed. Then she put her head into her hands, and cried.