Paper Lanterns

Two days before Christmas and Mike, Tre, and my now blue-haired Billie Joe were out with their producer talking about their upcoming recording session.

This was the perfect time to go finish my Christmas shopping.. I pulled out my Chuck Taylor box from under my nightstand and opened it up.

Every check I got from work, I spent half of it on groceries and bills, and the other half went into the box.
I'd saved up 4800 bucks, so I took it all and put it in my purse.

My first stop was the bank. I'd had an account since I was a kid, but never did anything with it. I've got about four grand in there now from birthdays and holidays.. I deposited 3300 of my cash, and then got on the BART to San Francisco.

I only had two more people on my shopping list; Billie and Tre. I knew exactly what to get the former, but Tre.. So I went into a small, familiar music store and looked around until I found it.

The perfect thing to get Billie; the white Gibson Les Paul Junior he had his eyes on when we last came in.

I had also found a pair of light up drum sticks- perfect for Tre. I got the clerk to help me, and he told me to find a case, so I picked one with furry leopard print inside.

The man gift wrapped it, and also wrapped Tre's sticks. I paid, and rushed home, hiding my things under Mike's bed. I sat on the couch, and right after I turned on the TV, in walked the boys.

"Grace! We're back," Billie announced, and I laughed.

"Yeah, I noticed. How did it go?"

"Great! We start recording on December 31st," he beamed.

"You forgot to mention the rest," Mike cut in, "we have like, twenty four hours and a grand to do it."

"Fuck man, that's all we need," Billie shot.

Mike went to argue, but I stopped them.

"Guys, no fighting. I'm too tired to put up with it."

"Oh? What've you been up to all day?" they asked.

"Absolutely nothing."

"Gray, that's such a lie," Billie laughed.

"Okay.. I was having hot sex with my Latino lover."

Mike cracked up, but Billie glared.

"That's not funny."

"Oh relax. I went and did some errands."

"Did you get me anything?" he asked, and Mike went into the kitchen.

"No. Why would I get you something?" Billie came and sat in my lap, facing me.

"Because I'm cute and you love me?"

"Well, you've got one thing right," I quickly kissed him, "you're pretty damn cute."

He rolled his eyes sarcastically.

"Thanks, now what'd you get me?"

I faked a shocked look.

"Why would you ask that, of course I didn't get you anything."

"Fine. Then I won't let you help pick songs for our album."

"Go ahead. That just means you aren't getting any Christmas presents."

"No Santa?" I nodded.

"Ok, you can help.. But you gotta let me open my present early."

"Nope, you have to wait like everyone else," I smiled, flipping the channel even though I couldn't see the TV.

On Christmas morning, or well, 4 a.m., I got up quietly and pulled the presents out from under Mike's bed, and set them under our "Charlie Brown" tree. It may have been small, but it was real, and overly decorated.

I went back to bed, only to be woken up at 7:30 by three obnoxiously loud voices.

"Wake her up! I want presents!"

"Why me?" I heard Billie whine.

"Because she's your girlfriend!" Tre retorted.

"Guys, shut up!" Mike whispered loudly. I sat up and yawned.

"Relax, I'm awake."

"Yay! Present time!" Tre pulled me out of bed and to the tree.

"Mike, you go first," I said, causing a frown to hit Tre's face.

"He needs to go back to bed, so let him go."

Mike quickly unwrapped his gifts, then the one from me, which was a bunch of CDs, bass strings, pics, and a Velvet Revolver shirt.

"Thanks guys. I'm going back to sleep."

"Night," we all chorused as Mike retreated to his room.

Tre was next. He loved the drum sticks and nearly hugged me to death, then he plopped on the couch, and turned on the TBS 24 hour showing of A Christmas Story.

"You next," I told Billie, placing his present in front of him.

He pulled off the paper, opened the box, and gaped at the case.

"Go on, open it up," I whispered, and he did.

His eyes lit up at the sight of the classic white Les Paul Junior. In between the strings and frets was a note I'd written, but I told him to read it later.

"Gray," he murmured, "how did you?"

He cut himself off by leaning over the guitar and pressing his lips to mine.

"How did I what?" I smiled once we broke apart.

He grabbed the guitar out of the case and fumbled around on it.

"How did you know? How'd you afford it?"

"Let's see.. I have magical mind reading powers. And never you mind how I paid for it. It's not important."

"Uh, nice try. Seriously, how?"

"Fine. I saw you gawking at it when we were last in that music store in San Fran.. And I've been a total miser and have been saving up a part of my pay ever since I got my job at Amoeba."

"You know you didn't have to," he told me, and I could tell he was being serious.

"I know, but I wanted to. That guitar suits you almost perfectly."

"Almost?"

"Yeah," I nodded, "Blue is perfect."

"What should we name it?"

"We?"

"Yeah, you did spend your hard earned cash on it for me."

"Well, how about Floyd?"

"How come?"

"Pink Floyd was playing on the radio when I got it."

"Perfect."

Tre came over and sat with us again.

"Hey, did you open your present from- Holy shit man! Where the hell did that come from?"

"Grace."

"Woahh. Anyways, I need to go home and sleep. I'm tired as fuck."

"You don't seem too tired," I observed.

"That, my dear, is my upbeat personality."

"Ah, well see ya then."

"Definitely."

"You next!" Billie announced once Tre left, and I began with Mike's, which was similar to what I'd gotten him, but with an Operation Ivy shirt.

Tre had gotten me frilly lingerie, a few books on stress and Karma, as well as a copy of the Shining with a note on the inside cover that asked me to read it to him and explain it.

Billie handed me his, and I carefully unwrapped it to see two different frames with two amazing pictures; one of younger versions of us at the park, sitting on the bench eating ice cream, and the other of the two of us and my mother at a carnival eating cotton candy.

"Oh, Billie Joe, thank you so much!' I set the frames down to hug him, but the stopped me.

"Nope. There's one more."

He pulled out a small box and my eyes widened.

"Relax," he opened it, "It's a promise ring."

"Oh," I breathed, "and what are we promising?"

"That no matter what, we'll always be these kids at the park, even if it's at heart. That we'll be together and happy, for as long as we can stand each other.. And that this whole record thing won't tear us apart."

I nodded, smiling.

"Very deep. I love it."

"So, you promise? Cause I do.."

"Yeah, I promise." He slipped the ring onto my right hand's ring finger, grinning the whole time.