Nuclear Family

"Rita Mae. Get your fucking ass in here right now."

Billie Joe's rage was crystal clear in his voice as he stood in the basement, arms crossed, staring up at the stairs expectantly. His daughter was sure as hell in for it when she came in.

"Hey dad, what's up?"

Rita Mae, now almost sixteen years old, trotted down the steps, trying not to spill the glass of fruit punch she had been holding on to. Looking at her father through the same shade of green eyes he had, she waited for his answer.

Billie looked her over, shaking his head slightly. Where had his little girl gone?

Her long, dark, reddish brown hair was straightened expertly and it fell almost halfway down her back, while the underside of her bangs were bleached a white blond. Rita's eyes were rimmed with black eyeliner, making the green stand out with purple eye shadow and mascara, from what he could tell.

She was almost at his height, which made him feel a bit better about himself because Jack was growing like a weed and would probably pass his own 5'8". The girl was wearing a pair of ripped up jeans and a low cut leopard print shirt, making her father groan. She was growing up and there was nothing he could do to stop it.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" He tried his best to keep a hard, disappointed expression on his face, knowing that she was his weakness.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Rita ran her fingers through her hair, a nervous tick she picked up from Grace.

Speaking of his wife, Billie wondered where she was on a Sunday afternoon in early September. He could have really used her help right about now. When it came to confrontations like this with his daughter, he was clueless.

"You have some balls, little girl. I know where you were last night." Billie watched a look of fear cross his daughter's face, but it was quickly turned into one of defiance. He had seen that look many times beforehand, but usually when he was staring at himself in the mirror.

"Oh yeah? Where was I then?" She crossed her arms over her chest, mimicking her father and standing her ground.

"You and Drew said you were going to the movies last night. A little bird told me that you two went and played a fucking show! What have I told you? You know how I feel about you being in that band."

Rita Mae's mouth dropped. How did he know where she had been? Jack really must have spilled the beans, because he had helped her sneak her keyboard up from the basement earlier in the day.

Rita, Drew, and two of their friends were in a band that she played piano and guitar for and sometimes she sang. Rita Mae wrote all of her own piano and guitar parts, while Andrew wrote the majority of the lyrics. Billie Joe wasn't too keen on his daughter being in a band with boys and he had told her this on several occasions.

"You can be pissed off all you want, dad. I don't care. You have no authority over me."

She knew her father was a huge softie. They had this argument many, many times and he always gave in to her. Billie Joe was just a big kid to her and Jack. He was more of a friend than a father. Rita's mother was the one to worry about, though; Grace was no nonsense when it came to handing out punishments.

"The only thing I ask is that you don't lie to me, Rita Mae.You're not going to Jack's Mannequin next weekend." Billie Joe felt himself smirking as he dished out her consequence, watching her demeanor falter and a frown fall over her gorgeous face. They were her favorite band. How dare he deny her of a concert.

"Fuck you, dad. I can't believe this bullshit. I'm going to that show whether you like it or not, and there's nothing you can do to stop me." Rita Mae turned on her heel, bolting up the stairs of the basement and making a run for her room before Billie Joe could tell her to watch her language.

---

Jack had heard the fight from the living room, where he had been playing Xbox and minding his own business. Of course his father had used him as a source, but he would never rat on his sister. He was above that pettiness, even though he was twelve. Jack was a lot smarter than people made him out to be; he may have been a quiet kid, but he wasn't an idiot.

Yes, he had helped Rita Mae sneak out her equipment for the show she had played last night, but no, he didn't tell their dad. Jack always covered for his sister whenever she needed him to because he understood and shared her passion for music. That, and the fact that he might need a favor or two from her in the future; he never knew.

Shaking his head of shaggy, dark brown, and somewhat curly hair, Jack turned off his gaming system and hoisted his lean frame off of the couch.

"Where's mom when you need her?" Jack sighed to himself, walking up the stairs. Grace was usually the voice of reason in the house. However, when she wasn't there for extended periods of time, things could get out of hand.

"Mae, can I come in?" Jack spoke through the white door, using the nickname only a few select people were allowed to address the girl by. He heard music floating throughout the room, so he knew she must have been cooling down.

"Access granted." Rita Mae opened the door and allowed him to step in before shutting it quietly.

"You and dad really got into it… Your fights are getting worse and worse."

Jack sat on her desk chair while the girl flopped onto her bed and stared at the ceiling.
Looking around at all of the posters and photos adorning her wall, Jack said that maybe she should consider trying to work things out with their father. Rita Mae let out a laugh, knowing that would never happen.

"We're too similar… We are so hard headed and stubborn that neither of us will budge. I don't know how to get it through his thick skull that I love making music. If Dad didn't want me to be in a band, then he shouldn't have taught me to play piano when I was little."

Rita Mae's band was called Milford Men, a nod to her and Drew's favorite show that wasn't on the air anymore, Arrested Development. They had played several small gigs without Billie Joe knowing, and a few that he had actually attended.

The band would hang out at Drew's house when his parents weren't home, and they'd spend hours smoking weed, watching Arrested Development, and writings songs.

Their catalogue included songs titled; I'm a Monster, Nevernude, Neither Seen Nor Heard, and Ten Cents Gets You Nuts. The songs didn't have to do with the show, but the majority of their titles did.

"Isn't he supposed to be going to New York to be in his play soon?" Rita Mae bitterly used the word play, knowing that her father always stressed that it was a musical. Well whatever it was, American Idiot was on Broadway now. For such a powerful album, Rita wasn't sure how she felt about it on stage.

"Yeah, at the end of September. I think he wants us to go for a weekend…"

"Hey, I'm down with that. Anything beats hanging around the house with Dad right now. At least I'll get to hang out with the cast or explore the city." She had really enjoyed being able to talk to the members of the cast during the summer when they had been in New York. Even though she was only fifteen, Rita felt wise beyond her years and usually got along with adults.

"What do you think Dad's gonna say to Mom when she gets home?" Jack ran his hands through his hair, feeling like World War III was going to start soon.

The kids both knew that their mother was most likely out taking care of things at Adeline or RPM. She was usually there to keep herself busy when they were at school.

"He'll probably tell her that I'm being out of control and that I need to have my legs amputated so I can't sneak off anywhere. How is it considered sneaking out when Tre takes us?!" Rita thought for a second, then realized who had ratted her out.

"Tre wouldn't do that! He's kept stuff to himself for us before, why would he all of a sudden start spilling now?" Jack refused to believe that his godfather would betray his sibling.

"Dad probably tricked it out of him. He's manipulative like that."