Dreams of Tomorrow

Sunny summer day, like most days in August, in So Cal.

Brian had left early and wouldn’t come back until late…

She had fallen into a routine.

Morning would be spent cleaning the apartment, getting herself ready. For lunch, she’d go to that small Chinese restaurant she went to a few weeks ago, she’d sat at the usual table, near the kitchen and would wait for Cha to finish her shift, then they’d go to the university, visit places around the campus, keeping in mind their tight budget and the urgency of the situation.

Afternoon would be spent with Cha, until around 5.30, when Cha had to go back to work and Lya would head back. Then, she’d call her father, pretending everything was alright and that she’d be coming back soon.

Around 7pm, dinner would be ready. She would save some in two plates for when Jimmy and Brian would come back.
They were one week left from releasing their new album.

After dinner, she’d watch TV for a while, then go to bed and read, waiting for Brian.
She never stayed up long enough and Brian had to switch off the bedside lamp and put her book away.

But today was different.

Cha had managed to find the perfect place the day before and while she had been excited during the visit, the excitation had been replaced by nostalgia and sadness the next morning as soon as she had taken a look at the calendar.

Lya was in Brian’s room, facing the window. She hadn’t moved an inch since the morning, after her shower.

She sat on the bed, crossed legged, her eyes gazing out of the opened window.

This day, it's been 3 years. It's been 3 years since her mother passed away. She let out a shaky breath as she realized that she had managed to make it so far.

She lifted her hand above her head, feeling the summer breath against her hand. The day she died, was much like this day, but in another country.

It seemed forever ago.

That tall, slim girl with chestnut hair and green eyes... Dreaming big, about the American dream... In her dreams, she was going to Green Day shows, wore ripped jeans, Chucks, bands T-shirts... She would go to Starbucks on a daily basis, had musicians as friends...
Thinking back to those days, and then to the present, that was it, she was living her dreams...

She remembered back then, when going to school was a nightmare, when she had to live with her mother's sickness... Right now, at the moment, she'd give anything just to be able to be in her mother's arms one last time.

To fell her skin, her body heat against hers, her arms wrapping around her, hearing her voice telling her that it'd be alright.

Lya was starting to forget her... Forget her face, her voice... It was freaking her out. But thinking that one day, she might only be able to remember her name... she couldn't accept it. She wouldn't.

"Mum..." she whispered, her voice shaking.

There was a soft knock at the door and she lazily turned her head to look at the intruder.

She was surprised to see Brian.

“Hey…”

“Oh, hey… The sun’s still up… How come you’re home so early?” she asked, trying to put a smile on her face, making it sound like a joke.

Brian took it as an acceptation of his presence and walked further in as Lya looked down at the picture laid in front of her.

“Told the guys I had some emergency today, but couldn’t get out until half an hour ago.”

“Emergency?” she asked, faking interest as her fingers touched her mother’s hair.
She felt the bed shifted and felt his body heat behind her, seconds later.

He wrapped his arms around her middle, resting his chin against her shoulder.
“I know today’s important… Didn’t like the thought of you alone today. I wanted to be there for you.” He whispered, his eyes falling on Shania’s picture.

"I'm forgetting her voice..." she whispered, her voice slightly breaking.

Brian could only wrap his arms tighter around her.

They stayed silent after that.
But Brian was here, he came back for her, and that meant a lot for her. It meant more than he could even imagine…

At that moment, going to college in LA and have the opportunity to stay with Brian on a long term, maybe even start something strong and steady with him never seemed so right. She relaxed in his embrace and thought about the previous conversations they had about Lya going to college, moving into an apartment with the Chinese girl she had just met, maybe join them on tour…

It was all started to fall in place, like pieces of a puzzle.

But she still had to go to San Francisco and talk to B and Adie about that project of hers.

She thought she’d have the time to talk to them about it before doing it, but she was running out of time.

They were ready to take their relationship to the next level.

**

Lya followed Brian up to the front door, pulling at her clothes and taming her hair. She wanted to look nice.

It did cross her mind that they had seen her in worst state, wearing the guys’ clothes staying over at their house, no make-up, barely slept… But this was different, Brain was going to introduce her as his girlfriend, that was one level up from being his friend.

She kind of guessed they liked her, since she got to stay at their place even when Brian wasn’t there, but what if they didn’t like her as their son’s girlfriend.

Her heartbeats started increasing as Brian knocked on the door. Lya heard the door opened, followed by a joyful “Hi Mom!”

Brian stepped aside, revealing Lya, holding a bouquet of flowers in her shaking hands.

“Lya…” she whispered, looking from the young woman to Brian, who shot her a bright smile.
She gasped and engulfed Lya in a bear hug.

“I’m so happy for you kids!” she said, stepping back and taking the flowers from Lya’s extending hands. “Thank you Lya darling! They’re lovely. Come on in! Honey, Your brother’s here! Brian, your son!” Suzy called out through the house, as Lya took off her shoes, like always. She felt slightly better after Suzy’s warm welcome. Brian kissed her cheek and went to the kitchen just as Mc Kenna came running down the stairs.

“Lya!!” she screamed, hugging her with her tiny arms. Lya picked her up slightly and kissed her cheek before letting her back down. Mc Kenna grabbed Lya’s hand and pulled her to the kitchen.

“Mom, Lya’s here!”
Suzy smiled at her daughter, the emotion still visible in her eyes.

Papa Gates walked out from the basement and stopped in his tracks when he caught sight of Lya.

“Dad, my girlfriend. Lya, my father.” He said, solemnly.

“Lya?”

“Hi Papa Gates.” she said, waving shyly from her spot next to Brian.

It felt weird to be introduced like that to his family, it made it even more real. She was Brian’s girlfriend indeed.
Papa Gates hugged Lya, before hugging his son.

“Took you long enough!”

**
When she walked out of the bathroom, she didn’t even had the time to say sandwich that Jimmy grabbed her arm and made her sat on the kitchen stool, pushing a steaming cup of black tea with milk and sugar in front of her.

“What the…”

“I wanna know everything that happened yesterday. You guys came back home late, I was thinking about sitting on the couch to wait for you, but thought it’d be too obvious, so I end up sleeping in my bed… Just what happened Lya? What was their reaction?”

She yawned and rubbed her face.

It was 7.30 on a Saturday morning, she was just supposed to go to the bathroom and get back to bed. Not falling into a trap by her hyperactive best friend. He shouldn’t even be up!

“They took it well. It was great really, didn’t change much from before, except that Brian kept taking my hand under the table. It stressed me out, but he looked even more freaked out than I did. Especially when the word wedding was said, I thought Brian was going to die choking on peas.” She mumbled, blowing on the hot liquid before trying to take a sip. “But apart from that, it went well Jimmy, really. No need for you to worry.”

“What did you guys do afterwards?”

“Huh, he took me to the pier and we walked a bit, before heading back.”

Jimmy nodded to himself, trying to hide his smile before he burst out and squeezed her in a tight hug, almost knocking off the mug.

“I want to be the first person to know when you guys get married!” he said, before kissing her hair. He went on “You guys will look so cute! You, in a dress, looking all girly… Damn… I can pictur-”

“Woahwoahwoah… Calm down alright Jimmy…” she muttered, pushing him away a bit.

“I still need to go to SF first you know… Billie Joe’s still clueless… I’m pretty sure all hell will break loose. God… Every time I think about it, my hands get sweaty and I’m scared to death. Fuck… My flight’s tomorrow…”

**

This one’s going to be difficult for Lya.
She was going back to SF, for a week. And she was still trying to figure out how she was going to tell her father. She dreaded that moment.

Lya waited for her suitcase, her passport in hand as she leant forward and grabbed it.
That wasn’t hers, that was Brian’s. Because she was supposed to “move out” her stuff.
She bit her lip as she picked up the almost empty suitcase and pulled it behind her as she walked off.

With no surprise, Billie Joe was there, along with Joey, who took off running as soon as he saw her, screaming Lya in the hallway.
She grinned and got ready for the impact as he threw himself at her.

Billie Joe was next, of course, and without the screaming and running, even though he felt just like Joey at the moment.

He wrapped his arms around Lya, his beloved ‘daughter’.

“I missed you little girl”

“I know Dad, I missed you too.” She whispered, nuzzling her face in his neck. Her heart just about burst in her chest at his sight, and even more when she felt his arms wrapping around her.

She was home.

“Come on Dad! Mum’s waiting!’ said Joey, pulling at his father’s arm.
The three of them made their way to the parking lot, chatting and laughing on their way.

“So, how was it in L.A?” asked BJ, looking at Lya in the driving mirror as they drove home.

“It was nice. Didn’t do much though, the guys are busy. They’re late on schedule and their new album is supposed to come out next week.” She said.

“They made it?” he asked, sounding surprised.

“Dad… I already told you, didn’t I? Besides, they’re not signed to a major label yet. But they’re getting there.” She said. “You wait and see!”

Billie Joe said nothing and kept looking ahead of him. Something seemed off with Lya, he didn’t know what, yet.

“So, how is it going with the album?” she asked. “I haven’t been able to hear anything from it yet.”

“We’ll drop by the studio soon then! We need to catch up on that!” said Billie Joe, smiling at her through the rearview mirror.

“I’ll be waiting then!”

**
Lya's mouth fall opened slightly. Her breath getting caught in her throat. Her heartbeats increasing.

Billie Joe's voice filled the air, filled the room. From her position on the floor, she tilted her head back slightly, taking it all in.

She felt whole, focusing all her senses on his voice, the warmness and emotion it brought to her.

It filled her, made her complete. All her pain, doubt and everything else around her vanished. Her mind empty.
He made her question her resolutions.

Could she really go and live in Los Angeles? Away from him?
Her heart break at the thought and then Brian's face flashed in her mind, and she opened her eyes, sucking in a breath. And as soon as her eyes opened, she saw Billie Joe, sitting at the piano, playing his newest song, smiling at her.

He couldn't wipe the small off his face, not when she had that look on her face. He loved that look. It made him feel like on top of the world. When she was by his side, he felt invincible.

He remembered the first time he had met her, the look on her face when she had seen his picture with his name. He often recalled that moment, it always warmed his heart and gave him confidence in what he did.
Adrienne was always supportive, but Lya's opinion mattered just as much, if not more.

As the song came to an end, she realized that this moment will be one of the last she would have the opportunity to share with him.

When she was back in her room, she spent a few moments looking out of the window. The view. She’d missed it.

Thinking back, she’d miss just about everything here…

“Lya?”

She froze and looked over her shoulder, Adie was standing there a curious look on her face as she saw a bag opened on the floor and Lya putting clothes in it, instead of unpacking.

“Oh, hey Mum.”

“What’s going on?” she asked, a frown on her face as she took a few steps in the room. “Are you moving out?”

“I… Huh.” Lya sighed and ran a hand through her hair. “About that, I wanted to talk to you… Do you have a moment?”

“Of course.”

Lya motioned for her to sit on the bed while she went to push the door closed.

Thoughts were running wild in her head as she went to sit on the bed, next to Adie.
Adie reached out and took Lya’s hands in hers.

“What’s wrong honey? You look pale, you haven’t been yourself since you arrived.”

“Mum, I…” Lya rubbed her neck. “I’m going to college, in Los Angeles.”

“That’s, that’s great Lya! What are you going to study?”

“International Management, I want to keep studying Chinese and pick up French again.” She said, her leg bouncing on the carpet.

“I’m proud of you Lya! That’s great! Your dad’s going to be thrilled that you want to keep studying!”

“The thing is… I don’t want you or Dad to pay anything. I got savings, I’ll handle every expenses.”

Adie kept silent.

“I’ve already found a place to stay, I’ll be roommate with a girl I met a few weeks ago. We’ll share the rent, the groceries… Basically everything. It’s not far from campus, I can walk there.”

“Lya, Dad’s not going to…”

She let out a deep, heartbreaking sigh. “I know, I just…”
“It’s important for me Mum. I don’t want to study, knowing that it’s you and Dad that are paying for me. I know you can afford it, but it’ll make me feel bad. I… I feel like I have to prove myself. I’ll be forever grateful for your help, but I can’t live with the fact that’ll pay for my studies. Plus you still have to pay for Joey and Jake’s college fees.”

Adie sighed, squeezing Lya’s hands in hers.

“Be honest baby. Why Los Angeles…”

Lya bit her lip and looked up at Adie’s wondering face.

“I’m kinda going out with someone? Like, for real… I thought that being in the same city would make it easier. Plus, I really want to study, I don’t think being a roadie is what was written for me.”

“Who’s the lucky guy?”

Lya’s face went bright red.
“Brian.”

Adie reached out to cup her adoptive daughter’s face in her hands.
“I’ll talk to your father.” She whispered, before she kissed her forehead.

Lya let out a sigh and hugged the older woman against her chest.
“Thank you Mum. I love you.”

“I love you too Lya. So… Are you packing for L.A?”

“Yeah… So I’d bring more clothes and keep my room here as a ‘back-up’ you know…”

Adie nodded.
“You’ve been living here for years now. Getting a place on your own will be a big step for you. But you’ll manage just fine. Are you girls settled already?”

“We’ve started to move things… I’ve been living at Brian & Jimmy’s since I arrived in LA. It’s nice to have a place of my own.”

Adie nodded smiling.

“I know what you just said… But if you need any help, buying furniture or anything… I’ll be more than happy to help you girls.”

Lya reached out to hug her again.
“I know Mum, thanks.”

Adie tugged a stray of Lya’s hair behind her ear.
“We’ll miss you.”

“I’ll come back Mum. And you can come and visit me, I’ll introduce you to Cha!”