Is the 'I Love You' Worth It?
For the Love of Money
"Now that you're knocked up, are you going to quit?" Tre says two mornings later.
"I wish," I say.
"You're not?" He takes a bite of poptart.
I shake my head. "Not just yet. I've got probably five more months or so until I can't anymore."
"But I don't want you working," he pouts.
"How come?"
"I don't want you to hurt yourself."
"Tre," I laugh. "I work at a cookie store. I'm not going to hurt myself. Plus, who's going to pay the bills?"
He points to himself. I laugh even harder.
"I'm sorry," I say when I've calmed down. "But you have to have a regular paycheck to pay bills."
"Well, when we start touring, I will get a regular paycheck. Plus, we're supposed to get our first check from Reprise in, like, two weeks," he says.
"Yeah, but-"
He gives me those damn puppy dog eyes.
"Never mind."
Grinning, he says, "You should quit."
"I want to, trust me, but I'm going to wait it out a little. Then, I promise I'll quit."
"Okay." He wraps his arms around me and pushes me back onto the couch.
"Guh," I pull away from his kiss, laughing. "You taste like poptart."
"Mm!" he shrieks, sitting up and shoving the rest of the one he was eating in his mouth. "So, you work today?"
"Yeah," I sigh. "I don't remember when. It's on the calendar."
"We have a calendar?" he asks.
"Uh, yeah."
"Oh," he says. I laugh.
"You're so unobservant."
Turns out I work from 10 to 3. And sans Paige!
When I get home, Tre's car is gone. He must be at Billie Joe's. For some reason, I miss him, so I decide to call over.
It rings four times before it's picked up.
"Hello?" a female voice answers.
"Hi, is Tre there?"
"No, he's not. Is this Lisea?"
"Yeah. He's not there?"
"Nope. He hasn't been all day. This is Adrienne by the way," she laughs.
"Hey Adrienne," I laugh too.
"Are you looking for him? I can ask Billie if he knows where he is," she says.
"Yeah, I just came home and his car was gone, so I thought he must have been with you guys. It doesn't really matter."
"Oh okay," she says. "He didn't leave you a note or anything?"
I laugh. "It's a rare occurrence if he leaves a note."
"Oh. Billie always leaves something."
"Yeah, well Billie is more responsible, I guess." I giggle.
"Yeah, I guess," she says. "So what have you been doing?"
"Aw, nothing. I just got home from work."
"Oh, the cookie store right?" she asks.
"Yes, oh god it's horrible."
"Really? I would think that cookies make everyone happy," she laughs.
"Oh horrible. The customers are pretty much the problem."
"Yeah, really. I worked at a Pier 1 back in Minnesota, and I had a woman freak out at me because the chair she wanted wasn't the right dimensions for her dining room."
"Like YOU changed the dimemsions just to spite her," I laugh.
"I planned ahead," she giggles.
"Yeah, just to make her life hard. Then there's this one woman I work with who's super positive. About everything. It's positively sole-crushing."
"A positivity Nazi?"
"Completely."
I hear Billie Joe and Mike yelling in the background.
"I don't miss that," I laugh. She laughs too.
"Video game tournament."
"Yup. I lived through so many of those."
"They're an experience," she says.
"Definitely," I chuckle. "Just be careful they don't spill their bong water on anything of yours."
"What?" she laughs.
"Oh yeah," I say between laughs. "Once they spilled it in the back seat of my car."
"What?" she said again. "The back of your car? It must have smelled-"
"Horrible. For days!"
"Oh my god!"
"Yeah. I don't know though. With Tre not there, it might be different. He seems to stir stuff up."
"He does seem to rile them up a little," she says. "I don't think that he means to."
"No, he just has so much energy. He's not doing it on purpose."
"Yeah. He's sweet, just a little wound up."
"ADIE!!!" I hear in the background.
"I have to go," she laughs. "I think they broke something."
"Okay," I giggle. "Talk to you later."
I hang up the phone and go into my bedroom to put away laundry.
"LISEA!"
I go to the front room.
"Hi," Tre says putting the stuff he's holding down on the couch and hugging me.
"Hey," I laugh. "I called Billie's place. I thought you were there."
"No, look what I got!" He holds up a fanned out stack of paint chips, all shades of blue.
"Paint chips?" I ask taking them from him.
"Yeah, for the baby's room!"
I put them down in my lap and look at him. "You are so sweet."
He blushes.
"And here I was worried you were going to leave and never have anything to do with the baby."
"I would never do that," he gasps.
"I know," I pull him into my arms.
"Look at them," he says. "I took a long time picking them out."
I pick them up and go through them.
"They're all blue," I say.
"I know," he says grabbing them away from me excitedly. "I like this one the best."
I smile and kiss him.
"You're so sweet."
**
Two weeks later...
The phone rings.
Tre looks at me.
"I'll get it," I mumble. "Hello?"
"Hey, it's Billie Joe."
"Hey! You wanna talk to Tre?"
"Yeah," he says. I hand it to him.
"Hello?" he asks.
"Oh, hey, really?"
"Sweet! I'll be right over!"
He hangs up the phone.
"Our checks have arrived!" he squeals.
"Really?" I say.
"Awesome, huh?" he laughs. "Let's go pick it up."
We head over to Billie Joe and Mike's.
"So," he asks in the car. "Do you want to tell them?"
"About the baby?" I say. He nods.
"You haven't even told your family yet!" I laugh.
"Hey, these guys are my family," he says pulling into the driveway.
"Yeah. I know, but I just wanna wait a little more time. Is that okay?"
"Okay," He smiles, kissing me.
"HEY!" Billie Joe and Mike scream when we entered the basement apartment. Billie Joe shoves Tre's check into his hand.
"Open it!" he says excitedly.
"Okay, okay," Tre says opening the envelope. His eyes go wide when he reads the amount the check is written for.
"Son of a bitch!" he laughs.
"I know!" Mike and Billie say jumping up and down.
"What, let me see," I say grabbing at the envelope. I take the check out and read the amount: $10,000.
"Holy shit!" I gasp.
"Yeah! The Reprise guys said it was like an advance from the initial record sales," Mike says.
"You all got this amount?" I ask. They nod.
"Oh my god," I gasp again. "You're rich!"
"It's about damn time," Billie laughs.
The door opens and Adrienne comes into the apartment.
"AHH!" Billie screams jumping onto her. "We're rich!"
"Ten thousand dollars!" Mike says.
"What?" Adrienne says, pulling away from Billie Joe's embrace.
"We got our checks from the record company, we're rich!"
"Really?" she says jumping back onto Billie Joe.
"Yeah!" Tre says, doing a jig on the couch.
Billie Joe looks over at Adrienne coyly.
"Well, we have some news too," he says.
"What?" Tre says. "Did you knock her up?"
I shoot a glance at him.
"Not yet," Billie wiggles his eyebrows at Adrienne. She rolls her eyes.
"We're getting married," she says.
"Really?" I say. "That's great!" I rush over and hug both of them.
"When?" Mike asks, hugging Adrienne.
"Um, before we leave. So, like, in two weeks," Billie says, beaming.
"I wish," I say.
"You're not?" He takes a bite of poptart.
I shake my head. "Not just yet. I've got probably five more months or so until I can't anymore."
"But I don't want you working," he pouts.
"How come?"
"I don't want you to hurt yourself."
"Tre," I laugh. "I work at a cookie store. I'm not going to hurt myself. Plus, who's going to pay the bills?"
He points to himself. I laugh even harder.
"I'm sorry," I say when I've calmed down. "But you have to have a regular paycheck to pay bills."
"Well, when we start touring, I will get a regular paycheck. Plus, we're supposed to get our first check from Reprise in, like, two weeks," he says.
"Yeah, but-"
He gives me those damn puppy dog eyes.
"Never mind."
Grinning, he says, "You should quit."
"I want to, trust me, but I'm going to wait it out a little. Then, I promise I'll quit."
"Okay." He wraps his arms around me and pushes me back onto the couch.
"Guh," I pull away from his kiss, laughing. "You taste like poptart."
"Mm!" he shrieks, sitting up and shoving the rest of the one he was eating in his mouth. "So, you work today?"
"Yeah," I sigh. "I don't remember when. It's on the calendar."
"We have a calendar?" he asks.
"Uh, yeah."
"Oh," he says. I laugh.
"You're so unobservant."
Turns out I work from 10 to 3. And sans Paige!
When I get home, Tre's car is gone. He must be at Billie Joe's. For some reason, I miss him, so I decide to call over.
It rings four times before it's picked up.
"Hello?" a female voice answers.
"Hi, is Tre there?"
"No, he's not. Is this Lisea?"
"Yeah. He's not there?"
"Nope. He hasn't been all day. This is Adrienne by the way," she laughs.
"Hey Adrienne," I laugh too.
"Are you looking for him? I can ask Billie if he knows where he is," she says.
"Yeah, I just came home and his car was gone, so I thought he must have been with you guys. It doesn't really matter."
"Oh okay," she says. "He didn't leave you a note or anything?"
I laugh. "It's a rare occurrence if he leaves a note."
"Oh. Billie always leaves something."
"Yeah, well Billie is more responsible, I guess." I giggle.
"Yeah, I guess," she says. "So what have you been doing?"
"Aw, nothing. I just got home from work."
"Oh, the cookie store right?" she asks.
"Yes, oh god it's horrible."
"Really? I would think that cookies make everyone happy," she laughs.
"Oh horrible. The customers are pretty much the problem."
"Yeah, really. I worked at a Pier 1 back in Minnesota, and I had a woman freak out at me because the chair she wanted wasn't the right dimensions for her dining room."
"Like YOU changed the dimemsions just to spite her," I laugh.
"I planned ahead," she giggles.
"Yeah, just to make her life hard. Then there's this one woman I work with who's super positive. About everything. It's positively sole-crushing."
"A positivity Nazi?"
"Completely."
I hear Billie Joe and Mike yelling in the background.
"I don't miss that," I laugh. She laughs too.
"Video game tournament."
"Yup. I lived through so many of those."
"They're an experience," she says.
"Definitely," I chuckle. "Just be careful they don't spill their bong water on anything of yours."
"What?" she laughs.
"Oh yeah," I say between laughs. "Once they spilled it in the back seat of my car."
"What?" she said again. "The back of your car? It must have smelled-"
"Horrible. For days!"
"Oh my god!"
"Yeah. I don't know though. With Tre not there, it might be different. He seems to stir stuff up."
"He does seem to rile them up a little," she says. "I don't think that he means to."
"No, he just has so much energy. He's not doing it on purpose."
"Yeah. He's sweet, just a little wound up."
"ADIE!!!" I hear in the background.
"I have to go," she laughs. "I think they broke something."
"Okay," I giggle. "Talk to you later."
I hang up the phone and go into my bedroom to put away laundry.
"LISEA!"
I go to the front room.
"Hi," Tre says putting the stuff he's holding down on the couch and hugging me.
"Hey," I laugh. "I called Billie's place. I thought you were there."
"No, look what I got!" He holds up a fanned out stack of paint chips, all shades of blue.
"Paint chips?" I ask taking them from him.
"Yeah, for the baby's room!"
I put them down in my lap and look at him. "You are so sweet."
He blushes.
"And here I was worried you were going to leave and never have anything to do with the baby."
"I would never do that," he gasps.
"I know," I pull him into my arms.
"Look at them," he says. "I took a long time picking them out."
I pick them up and go through them.
"They're all blue," I say.
"I know," he says grabbing them away from me excitedly. "I like this one the best."
I smile and kiss him.
"You're so sweet."
**
Two weeks later...
The phone rings.
Tre looks at me.
"I'll get it," I mumble. "Hello?"
"Hey, it's Billie Joe."
"Hey! You wanna talk to Tre?"
"Yeah," he says. I hand it to him.
"Hello?" he asks.
"Oh, hey, really?"
"Sweet! I'll be right over!"
He hangs up the phone.
"Our checks have arrived!" he squeals.
"Really?" I say.
"Awesome, huh?" he laughs. "Let's go pick it up."
We head over to Billie Joe and Mike's.
"So," he asks in the car. "Do you want to tell them?"
"About the baby?" I say. He nods.
"You haven't even told your family yet!" I laugh.
"Hey, these guys are my family," he says pulling into the driveway.
"Yeah. I know, but I just wanna wait a little more time. Is that okay?"
"Okay," He smiles, kissing me.
"HEY!" Billie Joe and Mike scream when we entered the basement apartment. Billie Joe shoves Tre's check into his hand.
"Open it!" he says excitedly.
"Okay, okay," Tre says opening the envelope. His eyes go wide when he reads the amount the check is written for.
"Son of a bitch!" he laughs.
"I know!" Mike and Billie say jumping up and down.
"What, let me see," I say grabbing at the envelope. I take the check out and read the amount: $10,000.
"Holy shit!" I gasp.
"Yeah! The Reprise guys said it was like an advance from the initial record sales," Mike says.
"You all got this amount?" I ask. They nod.
"Oh my god," I gasp again. "You're rich!"
"It's about damn time," Billie laughs.
The door opens and Adrienne comes into the apartment.
"AHH!" Billie screams jumping onto her. "We're rich!"
"Ten thousand dollars!" Mike says.
"What?" Adrienne says, pulling away from Billie Joe's embrace.
"We got our checks from the record company, we're rich!"
"Really?" she says jumping back onto Billie Joe.
"Yeah!" Tre says, doing a jig on the couch.
Billie Joe looks over at Adrienne coyly.
"Well, we have some news too," he says.
"What?" Tre says. "Did you knock her up?"
I shoot a glance at him.
"Not yet," Billie wiggles his eyebrows at Adrienne. She rolls her eyes.
"We're getting married," she says.
"Really?" I say. "That's great!" I rush over and hug both of them.
"When?" Mike asks, hugging Adrienne.
"Um, before we leave. So, like, in two weeks," Billie says, beaming.