Dreams of Tomorrow

Lya pushed the door open to a small grocery store and walked inside. It was the middle of the afternoon, on a school day so surely, she wouldn't meet anyone she knew. She walked along the aisle, her eyes scanning the products lining up. No chance. She turned into the next aisle.
Billie Joe's voice was accompanying her, singing to her as she kept searching for what she wanted. She finally found it, a smile lighting up her face as she crouched down and scanned the several products available to purchase.
She read the instructions carefully.

"That should do..."
She was too caught up in her thoughts that she didn't pay attention as she got back up and bumped with someone.

"Sorry..." she apologized, picking up her product and the other one that fell during the collision. She handed it back to the owner and looked up only to find herself face to face with Michelle.

Both girls starred at one other like a deer caught in the headlights.
 
"I... Wh-..."

Lya rubbed the back of her head.
"Hi Michelle... Hmm... What's up?"

Michelle tried to hide what she was holding, the best she could but seeing Athalya in front of her, she wanted to, at least talk to someone. She wanted to share her fear with her.

Silently, she held out what she was holding, for Lya to see. Lya looked down at the small box, and her eyes widened slightly, looking at Michelle only to see her starring down at her shoes, her eyes whelming up. Lya said nothing, simply tugged at Michelle's sleeve and they both headed to the cashier. Lya paid for both her and Michelle's stuff. She stuffed everything in one of those brown paper bags and they both left the store, ignoring the curious glance of the old woman behind the cashier.

"Thank you Lya..." whispered Michelle, finally lifting her head and looking at her once they were out in the street.

"It's okay Michelle, where would you like to go now... I mean, to use... well, you know..."

"My parents' aren't home..." she said. Lya nodded and followed Michelle on the sidewalk, both girls walking side by side, in silence.
Lya stayed quiet. She didn't want to ask questions, it was up to Michelle to tell her if she wanted, she wouldn't force her to. Michelle had both hands stuffed in her vest's pockets. She wanted to explain the situation to Lya, but she just simply didn't know where to start.

After a few minutes, they finally reached Michelle's parents' house. Michelle unlocked the front door and both girls stepped inside.
Lya took off her shoes, and watched as Michelle slowly kicked off hers. It wasn't like Michelle to look so lost. Lya remembered that Michelle had always been part of the few ones to welcome her with open arms. Michelle and her twin even came up with the nickname : 'Frenchie' for her. She smiled faintly at the memory and decided to break the ice.

"Listen Michelle, I'm not sure I'm the right person for you to talk to right now, but you obviously need to get it off your chest. I'll listen, and I won't judge you..." she said, rubbing her neck awkwardly. "So yeah.... If you want to talk, I'm here..."

Michelle looked at the green eyed girl and let out a small sigh,
"Let's go upstairs..." she whispered. And she lead the way to her bedroom, she shared it with Val. It's had its up & downs... Like when Val had Matt coming over...
Lya starred in awe at the girls' room. It was so different from her's.

"Don't mind the mess..."

Both beds were on either side of the room. Make up products were spread everywhere on the chest of drawers. Clothes were scattered on the floor, on the beds, on the chairs and desks... The doors of the closet were opened, clothes were threatening to fall on the next person who would attempt to pull at an item of clothing.
It was a mess, but it amazed Lya in a strange way.

The room was in perfect symmetry. The only way for her to discern which bed was Michelle was to look at the pictures splattered on the wall above the beds. On one side, it was mostly pictures of a girl with Matt, smiling, hugging, kissing... That was Val's bed.
On Michelle's side, it was pictures of her and the boys, her and Val and one that caught Lya's attention. She was with one of the Berry brothers.

Lya sat down besides Michelle, cross-legged on her bed and looked at her, waiting.

Michelle glanced at a picture, the same that had caught Lya's attention. She dropped her gaze and let out a sigh. She starred playing with the hole in her jeans, briefly looking at Lya before dropping her gaze once again.

And that's when Michelle started to tell Lya the reason why she was caught buying a pregnancy test. She told her how she had always been close to their group of friends, but mostly the Berry... Mostly Jason Berry. She told Lya how they had gotten closer over the last few months and how, during the Christmas break, they slept together, without protection.
Michelle made a small pause in her tell, glancing back up at the picture of her and Jason before continuing her story.

She, then, explained to Lya that her periods were late, she should have had them about a week ago. She told her how scared she was, how she was scared for herself, afraid to tell her parents, her sister and afraid to tell Jason.

Lya opened her mouth. She knew she couldn't comfort Michelle, she was just too awkward to try to comfort people in those kind of situation. The kind you see in movies, never in real life. She closed her mouth, she choose not to say a thing, afraid she would say something that Michelle would misinterpret... So she just took the pregnancy test out of the paper bag and handed it to Michelle.

Michelle looked up as the small box came into her vision. She looked at it, then back at Lya.
Lya nodded in the direction of her hand and Michelle slowly took it. She starred at it for a few seconds before getting off the bed and walking towards the door. She stopped at the doorway, unable to walk inside the bathroom. She looked at Lya from over her shoulder.

Athalya got up from the bed and went to stand next to Michelle. She opened the door to the bathroom and switched on the light.
"Go on Michelle, it's the only way for you to be sure. Maybe you're just... I don't know, maybe you've been stressed out and it's just a misunderstanding or whatever..." she said, trying to encourage Michelle to do the test.

Michelle took a deep breath and walked inside, she pushed the door but didn't close it, she left it ajar.

Lya let out a small sigh, turning her back to the door and leaning on the wall. She crossed her arms and tilted her head back, looking at the ceiling. Without being aware of it, she started lightly taping her feet. She was nervous too.
She just hoped it was a false alarm, that Michelle wasn't pregnant. She was just too young to be pregnant.
"Michelle?" she asked, at the lack of sound coming from her friend.

The door swung open and Michelle jumped out of the bathroom, throwing herself in the arms of a very surprised Lya. She was crying, as she was holding onto Lya, almost choking her.
"Michelle! what happened? Talk to me!" she said, trying to unclasp Michelle's arms from her neck.

"I'm not! I'm not!" she said, slowly letting go of Lya.

"Huh?"

"I'm not pregnant!" she said, smiling as tears kept rolling down her cheeks.

"Wha- how?! The test is negative?" asked Lya, looking at Michelle with her eyes wide.

Michelle shook her head and Lya's face dropped.
"Then, how..."

"I got my periods." she simply stated. "I've never felt more happy to have them in my whole life." she said with a small laugh.

Lya sighed in relief and let herself slide down the wall, her head softly hitting the wall.
"Fuck it Michelle! You scared me for a moment here..." she whispered, "But that's good news! I'm really glad." she said, smiling towards her friend.

"Me too... You can't imagine how much..."

Both girls fell silent. Michelle, too relieved and Lya, feeling a little out of place.
"Let's get something to drink..." said Michelle, grabbing Lya's hand and jogging downstairs.

Lya sat down at the kitchen table as Michelle was taking glasses out of the cupboard and taking out a bottle of apple juice from the fridge. She looked truly relieved, and not-caring, like how she was before. You couldn't guess she had been stressing over a possible pregnancy just a moment ago.

Michelle poured them a glass of apple juice and then took a seat next to Lya.
"Thanks for being with me, you know... And if you could, like... Keep this a secret between us, that wo-..." started Michelle.

"Seriously Michelle, like I would go around and talk about this... It's your life, it doesn't concern me. I have no intentions whatsoever to tell anyone. I'm really not like that... Besides, it's not like I'd have anyone to tell..." she said. Michelle smiled and reached out for Lya's hand.

"You're truly great, you know that? and what did you mean by that last sentence?"

"Oh you know... Brian, Jimmy... Not talking to me... Hell, I bet that now, even the whole school knows..." she mumbled, her mood darkening..

"Yeah, I know what happened. And they are morons." Lya looked at Michelle. "No really, they are stupid. And just like what you told me : it's your life, it doesn't concern me. They shouldn't have reacted the way they did... Especially Jimmy. They don't talk about it openly, but Matt was there, and he told Val and then Val told me... Anyway, it doesn't change my opinion. I think you're nice and you're pretty cool to hang out with. You're a good friend, Frenchie."
Lya smiled, looking down at her glass.

"I don't care if you know some famous rock star or whatever, what should matter isn't how famous they are, but how they treat you. I mean, as long as that Billie Joe guy treats you good and doesn't hurt your feelings, I won't judge you."
"He's like a father to me..." said Athalya. Michelle smiled, nodding to herself.

"Then, stop caring."

"Huh?"

"What's more important to you... Spending time with Billie Joe and his family? Or trying to make your friends understand something they obviously don't want to understand?" she asked. Lya looked at her. "Stop fighting, just enjoy life and the opportunity you have to spend time with him. Don't waste your energy on that. They'll get over it."
Lya stayed silent, proceeding what Michelle had just said.
"What should matter isn't their ego, but your happiness. If they are truly your friends, they will come around." she concluded, smiling at Lya.
She smiled back at the blond haired girl.

Lya opened her mouth to thank Michelle, but she bet her to it.
"So, what was in your bag?"
Lya chuckled and took out the box she had picked up earlier at the store. She passed it to Michelle.

"Hair dye?"

Lya smiled.
"Yeah, hair dye."

"I can do it, you know... I'm almost an expert at hair dying... I'm always the one dying Val's hair..." she explained.

"You sure you don't mind...?" asked Lya, not wanting to bother her.

"If I did, I wouldn't have suggested. Let's go back upstairs, I'll dye your hair Frenchie."
* *
It was the start of yet another school day... The week end was over, it was Monday now.
It's been 2days since she last saw any of her friends, the last one being Michelle.
Lya ran the brush through her hair one last time and smiled at her reflection. She didn't like to brag, but damn, changing her hair color had been such a great idea.
She let out a chuckle, running a hand through her now jet black hair and walked to the stairs, she skipped the last few steps and landed smoothly in the hall.

"Good morning!" she said brightly, as she entered the kitchen.

Suzan almost dropped the cup of tea she was holding as she saw her granddaughter kissing David's cheek.

"Lya...?" she asked, unsure.
The dark haired girl let out a chuckle as she faced her grandmother.

"Hey Mamie, it's a change, isn't it?" she asked, twirling a strand of hair between her fingers.

"For a change... That's a big one..." said David, chuckling. "It suits honey, really... When did you do that?" he asked, sipping some coffee.

"Friday, when I was at Michelle's..." she explained, standing next to her grandmother, who still looked as if she had just seen a ghost.

"That's why you kept wearing something on your head this week end... Am I right? So you could give your grandmother an heart attack on a school day?" he asked, amused.

"Well, I hadn't planned the heart-attack thing..." she answered, pouting while looking at your grand mother. "Does it look that bad?" she asked, making a face.

"No! Of course not! I just... Let me get use to it, right..." she said, hugging Lya. Lya chuckled and hugged her grand mother back, before taking a bowl and filling it with cereals and milk.

* *

"Oh fuck..." yawned Justin, stretching his arms above his head and letting himself fall between Brian and Jimmy. "I'm tired..." he mumbled as the rest of the group of friends settled down as well.
Michelle, who was sitting on Jason's lap, was looking around, looking for someone. Completely not caring what the rest of them were talking about.

"Any news from that weird girl?" asked Zacky, plopping down in front of Brian. Brian merely looked up, he kept starring at the wood pattern on that old picnic table. It was too cold now to sit down on the grass, so they had appropriated themselves an old picnic table in the park.

Jimmy glared at him. Val sighed "Okay guys, that's enough now... Lya is a good girl, she's dealing with some stuff... Forget about her for a while, give the girl some sp-"
She stopped mid-words, looking up at the figure standing at the end of the table. Old chucks, jeans, Green Day T-shirt, some Grey hoodie and then a bigger one, black, to shield her from the cold, a backpack... Nothing surprising so far, except that the girl had now jet black hair, and dark eye-shadows, making her green eyes stand out even more.

"Frenchie!" squealed Michelle, smiling brightly at her friend.
Lya smiled back and then focused on the rest of the group, her expression darkening slightly.

"I just came here to get a few things straight... First, I'm not here to apologize. Second, I'm not here to hear your apologize either, don't wanna hear it. Third, I think you should all get your head around a few facts : yes, my mother is dead. Yes, I live with my grand parents but I don't need your pity. And finally, yes, I do know Billie Joe from Green Day. I've known him ever since I stepped in this country. He's just like my father. Now that those points are straightened out... Should we still be friends?" she asked, shoving her hands in her Brian's hoodie. "Because it's okay you know, if those stuff are bothering you, I can move o..."

"I'm still your friend." said Johnny, smiling brightly at his friend. "But you knew that already." he added, glancing sideways at Brian and Jimmy.. Lya shot him a small smile. And then looked at the rest of them.
Matt nodded slowly.

"Well, let's just pretend we just met..." She said, taking a few steps back. She ran a hand through her black hair and shot them a warm smile, taking a few steps forwards again.

"Hi, name's Lya. I'm American, nice to meet you." she said, waving slightly. "Can we be friends?"

"That's fair..." said Matt, chuckling as he moved closer to the edge of the bench so Lya could sit.
She sat between Brian and Jimmy. The silence was awkward at first, but Michelle was quick to find a subject and the chatting began again. Lya sat awkwardly between her 'used to be' best friends, not knowing what to say.

"Jim-" she started, only for him to turn to face her almost instantly. They gaze at one other for a few seconds. His face was expressionless, while hers showed a bit a apprehension. After a few seconds, his face immediately softened and he smiled warmly at her.

"I'm glad you're back Shorty, I missed you!" he said, ruffling her hair.. She chuckled and didn't even stop him from messing her hair, she just tried to tamed them a bit afterward.

Then was Brian...

Lya turned to her other best friend, dreading his reaction. She had been quite harsh with him, asking him to leave for no reason...

"How come Green Day's leader was downstairs...?"
She froze.
"That was him, wasn't it?"
She blinked and looked down.
"Please, get out..." she said, her voice just above a whisper, almost cracking.

She glanced at him, he was still starring at the table. He looked tired and somewhat angry.
"Lya? You're coming or what?"

"Hmm?" She turned her head and saw that everyone was up, "Where are we going?"

"Grocery store, then at Matt's I think..." said Jimmy. She nodded. "I'm coming, I just..." she trailed off, glancing at Brian. Jimmy smiled and waved, going back to their friends.

Lya got off the bench and took a deep breath.

"Brian..." she said. No answer. She lightly touched his shoulder, "Brian, are you alright?"
He snapped out of his daze and turned to look at the intruder of his thoughts. Turned out the intruder was the subject of his thoughts.

"Oh sorry..." he muttered, getting on the bench. "Where's everyone?"

"Grocery store, then they'll head off to Matt's, from what I heard." she explained, rubbing her neck.
"Are you alright? I mean, you seem out of it..." she said.

"I'm fine... Just thinking to much..." he mumbled, avoiding to look at her.

"Brian, I have to say... Well, I know I said I wouldn't apologize but.... I'm sorry... You did nothing wrong, but yet I hold you responsible for something that was my fault..." she said, looking down at the grass. "Also, I know you guys were worried about me, so again, sorry for making worry about something not worthy."

"Can I hug you?" he asked.

She looked up and blink, but she walked up to him and walked into his open arms.
He held her against his chest, his arms tightly wrapped around her, one around her waist, one hand on her hair. His head resting on top of hers.

"I missed you... I don't care if you know Billie Joe or Kurt Cobain or whoever, just never, never do that again..." he mumbled.

He reluctantly let go of her.

"I mean, I wouldn't have anyone to play guitar for... You know, I worked hard those last few weeks... I learned how to play Basket Case..." he said as they walked side by side to the grocery store, hoping to catch up with the rest of the group.

Lya stopped in her tracks. "No way, you did?"

"Yeah..."

"I love you!" she squealed, grabbing his arm. "You're the best!"
He smiled proudly as Lya kept her arm linked with his, finally reaching their friends who had waited for them by the park entrance.