Paper Lanterns
Mikey's visit
"Maria? Is that really you?" Your mom's face lit up. The lady went back to the front desk, closing the door behind you. "And look, you brought your panda I got you."
"Hi Mom." You said. You were so happy to see her. "I've missed you so much."
Your mom hugged you. "I've missed you too, sweetie. How are things at Ollie's?"
"It's okay." You shrugged. Then realizing that your mom can see right through the lies.
"Honey, I know it's not. Now tell me what's bothering you." You mom said with a concerned look on her face. You explained everything to her. "Oh Maria. I'm sorry." She hugged you again. You began crying.
"I know." You sniffled and wiped away the tears on your face, for the second time today. "I'll be okay though. I mean it's only two more years, right? I'll manage."
"Okay." was all your mom said. There was a couple minutes of silence. "How did you get in here anyway? I thought you had to be 18 to see me or I had to be released, neither of which has occurred."
"She didn't ask my age." You said. Just then the door opened and the lady was back.
"Sorry ma'am, but time's up. Gotta say goodbye to your mom." She said politely.
You looked at your mom. "See you later, Mom. Not goodbye. Love you."
"Bye Maria. Love you." Your mom said before you and the lady from the front desk walked out.
"I know you're not supposed to see your mother." She said sweetly to you. You froze. Busted. "But I'll you see her. I'm not here all the time though. So here are my hours, and you can come then. She wrote down the hours on a piece of paper and handed it to you.
"Thank you." You said before walking out the door and back home.
When you reached the house, no one was still home so you ordered a pizza because it was around dinnertime and you never got to eat your cereal. The pizza came just as Billie, John, and Mike came through the door. They all said hi to you but you ignored them. You got your pizza and headed upstairs.
"What's with her?" John asked just as you reached the top of the stairs. You went back into your room and ate your pizza. Just as you finished, you heard a knock at the door.
"Maria, can we talk? It's Mike." You got up and opened the door and let him in.
"Yeah?" You said as he sat down on your desk chair and you sat back down on your bed.
Mike suddenly got very serious. "What's wrong Maria? Come on, you can tell me. I won't tell anyone, you know that."
"In lamens terms, everything." You said sullenly.
Mike sighed. "Does it have to do with Billie Joe?"
You nodded. "He told me last night that he loved me, and this morning he hinted that he didn't mean it...at all." You paused. "So that's why I stayed home. I wrote a song and I went to see my mom, even though I'm not supposed to."
"You went to see you mom??" Mike was shocked. Why, you don't know.
"Didn't I just say that, Mike?" You said getting annoyed. "Yeah, I saw my mom. Big deal. I needed someone to talk to and I didn't think that talking to my mob boss friend was a good idea. It was my mom or no one."
"You could've talked to Billie Joe." Mike said.
You laughed. "Yeah right." You paused. "I can't even look at him."
"I know, Maria." Mike say still concerned about me. "But you're gonna have to face him sometime. I mean you both live in the same house." You smile a bit. "See, there's the Maria I know."
"Fine Mike. I'll talk to him later." You were gonna talk to him. For real. "And, I'll let you know what happens."
"You don't have to, but if you want to you can." Mike smiled. "Come on. It's not normal to lock yourself up in your room all night."
"Okay." You said smiling.
You both walk downstairs where Billie Joe and John are fighting over the last slice of pizza. You smile to yourself and grab the slice of pizza.
"Hey!" John and Billie say at the same time.
"Oh no, not again. Except this time it's John and Billie instead of John and Mike" You say to yourself. You go to take a bite out of the slice of pizza, but Mike takes it from you. "That was cold. Real cold."
"I know." Mike says smiling as he's halfway through the slice of pizza already.
"Hm, how many pieces did you guys have?" You ask. Mike raises 2 fingers, John raises 3 fingers, and Billie raises 2 fingers. You only had one piece. "Well it was 18 bucks counting tip, so that means Mike and Billie owe me $4.50 each, and John owes me a whopping 6 bucks and 75 cents."
"Huh?" Billie says completely confused.
"I bought the pizza with my money, therefore you owe me since you ate it all." You say smiling. "It's $2.25 a slice, so I only ate $2.25 worth of pizza. Pay up. John and Mike forked over the cash, $11.25 total. Billie Joe however, was being stubborn and wouldn't give you his $4.50. "Come on, Armstrong. Fork it over."
Billie Joe imitated a little child. "And what if I don't wanna, whatcha gonna do?"
"Call Uncle Mike." You said calmly. He handed you the money. "Thank you." You smiled.
"Yeah, yeah." Billie said defeated. Mike and John decided to go home. You sat down on the couch in the living room and turned on the tv. Helter Skelter was on. (Me: only 'cause I'm watching it, you're watching it) Billie sat down next to you and watched it with you. When it was over you turned to him.
"We need to talk." You say after taking a deep breath.
Billie Joe laughs. "We've been doing a lot of that lately, haven't we?"
"Yeah, I guess." You give him a weak smile. "Um, the real reason I didn't go with you guys..." You trailed off. Billie nodded for you to continue. You took another deep breath. "Well, you were right. It had to do with you."
"Oh." Billie says. "I kinda figured. I remember what you had said last night as well as what I said. But, you didn't mean it right?" You just looked at the wall, suddenly becoming fascinated at the picture on it. It was of you and Billie Joe when you were little. Ollie and Andy took you to the boardwalk and you had gotten ice cream. Tears starting rolling down your cheeks. "I'm sorry, Maria. I'm sorry." Billie held you tightly, like he were protecting you as if he were going to lose you forever if he let go. You fell asleep a few minutes after.
"Wake up sleepyheads! Time to go to school!" came from a loud voice the next morning around 7. It was John. Mike was standing next to him and you looked at him and smiled. He smiled back. But it wasn't a warm smile. It was like he knew something and didn't want to tell you. Billie had gone up to his room to change and John went into the kitchen as usual.
"Mike, what aren't you telling me?" You asked nervously.
"What?" Mike said as if he were snapped out of a daze. "Oh. Nothing, Maria." You noticed he looked towards the stairs because Billie was coming down right when he answered.
It has to do with Billie.
You all got to school with minutes to spare. You went to your locker which was near Billie's, Mike's, and John's. Weird, I know. You looked over in the direction of Billie's when you heard his name being called by a familiar voice. A familiar, whore-ish voice. Marcia. She came over to his locker and he kissed her. Just like he kissed you two nights ago, when you were both drunk. He pulls away and says "I'm glad you're my girlfriend."
Oh, did that make you mad. You slammed your locker with such force and anger that you thought it would've broken off the hinges. You stomped past the two "lovebirds" and you heard Marcia say in a preppy voice "What's wrong with her? Did she get rejected or something?" You didn't hear what Billie Joe said and let's just say, you were better off not knowing. Oh, how I'd love to bash her skull against a locker you thought to yourself.
You made your way to homeroom and took your seat. (Me: remember I said you don't have friends, well I lied..I need to make it so you have other friends because, well you'll see) You saw Dani and Lisea as they walked in. "Hey guys." You said.
"What's up? You seem more depressed than usual." Dani said. Just then Billie Joe and Marcia walked in. He sat next to her, instead of next to you like he usually would. You watched them the whole time. "Say no more." Dani and Lisea knew you liked Billie Joe.
"What is it with him and those, sluts?" Lisea asked. "I mean, you're way more compatible with him then they'll ever be."
"I know." You say looking back at the door and John and Mike come running through the door just as the bell rings. They stop and just stare at Billie Joe and Marcia like he's totally lost it. "Practice today after school, 'cause it looks like I won't have a ride home." You say sullenly as Mike sits down next to you and John next to Mike.
"Yeah, at my place" Lisea says. You, Dani, and Lisea are in a band called Atomic Rave. It sorta formed over the weekend, on Friday to be exact. Lisea is the drummer and Dani, which is short for Danielle, is the bassist of the band but also plays guitar sometimes. She sings back up. You are the frontman, well woman, of the band. You play guitar.
Mike looks at you strangely, "Practice? Not having a ride home? What's going on, Maria?"
You look at him like you're going to cry. "Haven't you heard?" He shakes his head. You looked over at Billie Joe and Marcia and you wanted to hurl. You mentally kicked yourself as the words came out of your mouth. "Billie's got a girlfriend."
"Hi Mom." You said. You were so happy to see her. "I've missed you so much."
Your mom hugged you. "I've missed you too, sweetie. How are things at Ollie's?"
"It's okay." You shrugged. Then realizing that your mom can see right through the lies.
"Honey, I know it's not. Now tell me what's bothering you." You mom said with a concerned look on her face. You explained everything to her. "Oh Maria. I'm sorry." She hugged you again. You began crying.
"I know." You sniffled and wiped away the tears on your face, for the second time today. "I'll be okay though. I mean it's only two more years, right? I'll manage."
"Okay." was all your mom said. There was a couple minutes of silence. "How did you get in here anyway? I thought you had to be 18 to see me or I had to be released, neither of which has occurred."
"She didn't ask my age." You said. Just then the door opened and the lady was back.
"Sorry ma'am, but time's up. Gotta say goodbye to your mom." She said politely.
You looked at your mom. "See you later, Mom. Not goodbye. Love you."
"Bye Maria. Love you." Your mom said before you and the lady from the front desk walked out.
"I know you're not supposed to see your mother." She said sweetly to you. You froze. Busted. "But I'll you see her. I'm not here all the time though. So here are my hours, and you can come then. She wrote down the hours on a piece of paper and handed it to you.
"Thank you." You said before walking out the door and back home.
When you reached the house, no one was still home so you ordered a pizza because it was around dinnertime and you never got to eat your cereal. The pizza came just as Billie, John, and Mike came through the door. They all said hi to you but you ignored them. You got your pizza and headed upstairs.
"What's with her?" John asked just as you reached the top of the stairs. You went back into your room and ate your pizza. Just as you finished, you heard a knock at the door.
"Maria, can we talk? It's Mike." You got up and opened the door and let him in.
"Yeah?" You said as he sat down on your desk chair and you sat back down on your bed.
Mike suddenly got very serious. "What's wrong Maria? Come on, you can tell me. I won't tell anyone, you know that."
"In lamens terms, everything." You said sullenly.
Mike sighed. "Does it have to do with Billie Joe?"
You nodded. "He told me last night that he loved me, and this morning he hinted that he didn't mean it...at all." You paused. "So that's why I stayed home. I wrote a song and I went to see my mom, even though I'm not supposed to."
"You went to see you mom??" Mike was shocked. Why, you don't know.
"Didn't I just say that, Mike?" You said getting annoyed. "Yeah, I saw my mom. Big deal. I needed someone to talk to and I didn't think that talking to my mob boss friend was a good idea. It was my mom or no one."
"You could've talked to Billie Joe." Mike said.
You laughed. "Yeah right." You paused. "I can't even look at him."
"I know, Maria." Mike say still concerned about me. "But you're gonna have to face him sometime. I mean you both live in the same house." You smile a bit. "See, there's the Maria I know."
"Fine Mike. I'll talk to him later." You were gonna talk to him. For real. "And, I'll let you know what happens."
"You don't have to, but if you want to you can." Mike smiled. "Come on. It's not normal to lock yourself up in your room all night."
"Okay." You said smiling.
You both walk downstairs where Billie Joe and John are fighting over the last slice of pizza. You smile to yourself and grab the slice of pizza.
"Hey!" John and Billie say at the same time.
"Oh no, not again. Except this time it's John and Billie instead of John and Mike" You say to yourself. You go to take a bite out of the slice of pizza, but Mike takes it from you. "That was cold. Real cold."
"I know." Mike says smiling as he's halfway through the slice of pizza already.
"Hm, how many pieces did you guys have?" You ask. Mike raises 2 fingers, John raises 3 fingers, and Billie raises 2 fingers. You only had one piece. "Well it was 18 bucks counting tip, so that means Mike and Billie owe me $4.50 each, and John owes me a whopping 6 bucks and 75 cents."
"Huh?" Billie says completely confused.
"I bought the pizza with my money, therefore you owe me since you ate it all." You say smiling. "It's $2.25 a slice, so I only ate $2.25 worth of pizza. Pay up. John and Mike forked over the cash, $11.25 total. Billie Joe however, was being stubborn and wouldn't give you his $4.50. "Come on, Armstrong. Fork it over."
Billie Joe imitated a little child. "And what if I don't wanna, whatcha gonna do?"
"Call Uncle Mike." You said calmly. He handed you the money. "Thank you." You smiled.
"Yeah, yeah." Billie said defeated. Mike and John decided to go home. You sat down on the couch in the living room and turned on the tv. Helter Skelter was on. (Me: only 'cause I'm watching it, you're watching it) Billie sat down next to you and watched it with you. When it was over you turned to him.
"We need to talk." You say after taking a deep breath.
Billie Joe laughs. "We've been doing a lot of that lately, haven't we?"
"Yeah, I guess." You give him a weak smile. "Um, the real reason I didn't go with you guys..." You trailed off. Billie nodded for you to continue. You took another deep breath. "Well, you were right. It had to do with you."
"Oh." Billie says. "I kinda figured. I remember what you had said last night as well as what I said. But, you didn't mean it right?" You just looked at the wall, suddenly becoming fascinated at the picture on it. It was of you and Billie Joe when you were little. Ollie and Andy took you to the boardwalk and you had gotten ice cream. Tears starting rolling down your cheeks. "I'm sorry, Maria. I'm sorry." Billie held you tightly, like he were protecting you as if he were going to lose you forever if he let go. You fell asleep a few minutes after.
"Wake up sleepyheads! Time to go to school!" came from a loud voice the next morning around 7. It was John. Mike was standing next to him and you looked at him and smiled. He smiled back. But it wasn't a warm smile. It was like he knew something and didn't want to tell you. Billie had gone up to his room to change and John went into the kitchen as usual.
"Mike, what aren't you telling me?" You asked nervously.
"What?" Mike said as if he were snapped out of a daze. "Oh. Nothing, Maria." You noticed he looked towards the stairs because Billie was coming down right when he answered.
It has to do with Billie.
You all got to school with minutes to spare. You went to your locker which was near Billie's, Mike's, and John's. Weird, I know. You looked over in the direction of Billie's when you heard his name being called by a familiar voice. A familiar, whore-ish voice. Marcia. She came over to his locker and he kissed her. Just like he kissed you two nights ago, when you were both drunk. He pulls away and says "I'm glad you're my girlfriend."
Oh, did that make you mad. You slammed your locker with such force and anger that you thought it would've broken off the hinges. You stomped past the two "lovebirds" and you heard Marcia say in a preppy voice "What's wrong with her? Did she get rejected or something?" You didn't hear what Billie Joe said and let's just say, you were better off not knowing. Oh, how I'd love to bash her skull against a locker you thought to yourself.
You made your way to homeroom and took your seat. (Me: remember I said you don't have friends, well I lied..I need to make it so you have other friends because, well you'll see) You saw Dani and Lisea as they walked in. "Hey guys." You said.
"What's up? You seem more depressed than usual." Dani said. Just then Billie Joe and Marcia walked in. He sat next to her, instead of next to you like he usually would. You watched them the whole time. "Say no more." Dani and Lisea knew you liked Billie Joe.
"What is it with him and those, sluts?" Lisea asked. "I mean, you're way more compatible with him then they'll ever be."
"I know." You say looking back at the door and John and Mike come running through the door just as the bell rings. They stop and just stare at Billie Joe and Marcia like he's totally lost it. "Practice today after school, 'cause it looks like I won't have a ride home." You say sullenly as Mike sits down next to you and John next to Mike.
"Yeah, at my place" Lisea says. You, Dani, and Lisea are in a band called Atomic Rave. It sorta formed over the weekend, on Friday to be exact. Lisea is the drummer and Dani, which is short for Danielle, is the bassist of the band but also plays guitar sometimes. She sings back up. You are the frontman, well woman, of the band. You play guitar.
Mike looks at you strangely, "Practice? Not having a ride home? What's going on, Maria?"
You look at him like you're going to cry. "Haven't you heard?" He shakes his head. You looked over at Billie Joe and Marcia and you wanted to hurl. You mentally kicked yourself as the words came out of your mouth. "Billie's got a girlfriend."