One Last Chance

~Billie's P.O.V~

After the scene in the alleyway, time seemed to blur and I couldn't seem to remember what happened. I had screamed for Mike and Tre, and they had found me. Tre went to call an ambulance while Mike and I tried to resuscitate her. Finally we felt her frail heartbeat, and she raced with her to the hospital. Now me and the guys were waiting outside her room, waiting for some kind of sign that she was alive.

Soon enough, an old nurse came out of her room. I jumped up and stopped her in her tracks.
'Is Fran okay? What's wrong with her? Is she still alive?' I stammered, wanting answers. The nurse held up her hands. 'Slow down Mr. Armstrong. Yes, Francesca is still alive-'
I gave a loud sigh of relief.
'But,' the nurse cut in. 'I'm afraid that she doesn't have much longer. The lukaemia has gotten worse. The alcohol had nothing to do with it, it just horribly disagreed with her immune system.'
I sunk back down in my chair and put my face in my hands. She was going to die, and I felt like it was all my fault. I willed myself not to cry as I felt the tears form, but it was harder than usual.

'I'm sorry Mr. Armstrong. If there is anything I can do for you gentlemen, please let me or one of the staff know.' the nurse said calmly. And she left us alone, trying to accept the fact that Fran really was going to die. '
'Shit.' Tre said quietly, staring hard at the floor. Mike just stared into space, his face growing pale. I felt so alone, even though I had my two best friends with me. Suddenly, I found that I was pulling out my phone and dialing my wife's mobile number. I stared at the screen, wondering if I should really bother Adrienne with this. But she was the one that convinced me to come in the first place. I walked down to the end of the hall and called her number, hoping that she would pick up.

~Adrienne's P.O.V ~

The sound of my mobile woke me up. The ringtone made my head ache as I sat up in bed. It was six in the morning and I felt half dead. I reached for my phone in the darkness of the bedroom, and I glanced at the screen. I was jolted awake suddenly when I saw who was calling. It was Billie! Feeling fully awake and slightly excited, I answered the phone.

'Billie?' I said quietly, trying not to shout, knowing that I would wake the boys if I did.
'Hi Adie.' Billie's voice responded. But I was concerned, he sounded terrible.
'Billie, what's wrong?' I questioned, turning on the lamp on my bedside table. I realized that if he was calling me at this time, it was obviously not good news.
Billie sighed into the phone. 'Adie, it's Francesca. She's-she's dying.'
I heard myself gasp stupidly. I gathered myself. I knew it was going to happen sooner or later.

'Billie, honey, will you be okay? I can come over if you want me to.' I jumped out of bed and pulled out my suitcase from under the bed. I was going over to comfort him, whether he liked it or not.
'Adie, you don't have to go to the trouble-'
'No, I'm coming. You sound like total shit, and I want to be there for you! Brittney can come as well!'

There was a small pause. I hoped that Billie would give in and let me go, and even if he said no, I would still go anyway.

'Alright. But what about Joey and Jakob?'
I opened up the wardrobe and started pulling out clothes. I was desperate to be with Billie again. I just hated having to sleep alone, even though I've had to put up with it for years.
'I can get your mom to come over. She loves taking care of the boys, and she can also babysit Brixton!'

Billie gave a small sigh again. 'Alright. Catch a flight as soon as you can. I love you Adie.'
I stopped in the act of throwing my t-shirt into my bag. The heartbreak in Billie's voice made me feel overwhelmed. For some reason I felt like crying.
'And I love you too Billie Joe.'
We said our goodbyes and hung up. I stood there for a little while, holding the phone to my chest. I had never wanted to be with Billie as much as I did right then. I threw everything I owned into the bag, called Billie's mom and Brittney, who was definitely coming and left a simple note for the boys. I was heading to Australia for in fact the first time, and I knew that I had to move fast.

~Billie's P.O.V~

For the next few hours of the early morning, we sat there, watching doctors and nurses moving in and out of Fran's room, and we would bombard them with questions, and they never answer us.

Finally, a doctor came out and looked at us. 'Alright gentlemen. You can come in now.'
We all jumped up at the same time and made our way into the room. Fran was lying in the bed, looking like a broken rag doll, and she looked so pale that I already thought she was dead.
'I'll give you fellows 20 minutes. She wont have much strength.' And with that, the doctor left, closing the door behind him. Tre rushed up first and knelt by Fran's bedside, looking more desperate than I had ever seen him before. 'You awake Fran?' Tre whispered. Mike and I walked up and pulled up a chair. After a few seconds, Fran slowly opened her eyes.

'Hey guys.' she said, laughing weakly. I felt the urge to hug her, or even kiss her again, just so I could show her how happy I was to see her alive.
'Thank God your'e alive!' Mike said, gently taking her hand and squeezing it.
'What happened? I don't remember anything. All I remember was that I was hanging out backstage, and I was with this guy. . . '
Tre and Mike looked at me to explain. I shifted nervously in my seat. I told her everything up to the point of fighting the guy and making him piss off. Tears starting pouring down Fran's face.
'Oh my God! I cant believe I fell for him! He seemed so nice to me, but he just wanted to. . . to-' Fran's voice broke and she fell silent. I leaned forward and took Fran's hand. 'It's okay. You don't have to blame yourself.' My heart skipped a beat when she smiled at me. We all talked to her for a little while. Eventually, Tre and Mike left the room to get some coffee.
'You want something Billie?' Mike questioned before he left.
'Uh, sure just a cappuccino would be alright.' When I made sure that Mike and Tre were gone, I moved closer to Fran.

'Fran, when I told you what happened, I left something out.' I started out shakily. Fran looked at me in a confused way. 'Really? Was it so bad that you couldn't mention it in front of the other guys?'
I shrugged. 'Well, I mean it's not's bad, y'know-well-okay it's kinda bad.' I stammered.
'Well, just tell me!' Fran said desperately.
I groaned and ran my fingers through my hair. 'Alright, well, when I got rid of that loser, I tried to get you up, and you were pretty drunk. And when I got you up - you kissed me.' I said all this as fast as I could. Fran raised her eyebrows at me.
'Really? I did? Oh shit!' she muttered. 'That must have been flattering.'
I gave a small chuckle.
'Well, I'll tell you one thing.' I said quietly. 'You are a pretty good kisser.'
Fran laughed weakly. 'Yeah right!'
I moved closer to Fran. 'No I'm serious! But still, I shouldn't ever do it okay. Alright?'
I could see a trace of disappointment in Fran's face. 'Alright. I don't even remember it, so it's not a big loss.'

I laughed, but it was true. She wouldn't miss it, but I slightly would. Suddenly, I lent forward and gave Fran a small kiss on her lips. I stood up and smiled at Fran, who looked slightly shocked.
'Well, are you gonna do that last concert?' Fran said, looking away with a look of embarrassment on her face. At that moment I felt like a complete idiot I nodded, said goodbye, promising her that we would come back after thee concert and left the room, mentally slapping myself.
Why did I kiss her again? Was I trying to get her spirit up?
But I had to forget it. All I wanted to do was go back to the hotel and catch up on lost sleep. Plus, sleep would make the hours fly by, therefore making Adrienne come faster.