Viva La Gloria II: 21st Century Breakdown

“Do you want to go to the "August Nights Talent Festival?” I asked billie leaning up against a rough barked tree. Waiting for the rest of our posse to join us. I had no idea where they were. I knew where trader Myriah was, talking to the enemy.
“What is that? Like some kind of talent show?” he looked up at me with his cool green eyes. Petrifying me momentarily.
“Uh yeah” I breathed then I straightened out to finish.
“Anyone who thinks they got talent is free to come and join in,
So like anything from acrobats, magicians. Or music players or anyone with a visual talent” I finished.
He nodded and turned to see Tré walking up the trail talking up some stranger he'd met on the beach.
“Hey guys! This is Adele Risher! She is like really cool!” I could tell Tré was a fallen for this pretty girl. She was about two inches shorter than him but she had dark maroon colored hair with black streaks. A pretty round face and dark green eyes. And she was fairly skinny. No larger than him from side to side wise. She looked a lot like me style wise. She wore bright yellow converse and a grey V-neck cotton t-shirt with a worn out bar name logo on it. She didn't look like she had ever been intoxicated. 
But something about her screamed that I knew her. That name... I've heard it before. I racked my mind for some sort of answer to my assumption,
“Adele Risher? I think I know you” I stepped up carefully to her. Sizing her, trying to remember this nice girl.
Her eyes narrowed.
“I think I know you too” we stared at each other for a moment.
“Did we go to camp together?” she asked.
“Oh, is your name Gloriana Andys?” she exclaimed suddenly.
“Yeah, Oh Oh oh! Adele Risher! From summer camp!” that was a long time ago. I'm surprised I even remembered her.
“Hi Gloria! Omg! It's been so long how have you been?”
I looked to Billie. I realized I had to tell her my life story since I'd last saw her. And that was when I was 18 So like 7 years. she hadn't changed too much.
“Well, um most recently I kidnaped Green Day” I smiled sheepishly waving a hand to them for their benefit.
Her eyes widened with surprise and suspense.
“Of course, Tré Cool and Billie Joe Armstrong and Mike Dirnt and Jason White” she smiled warmly.
“You didn't really kidnap them did you?” she asked me sternly.
“No no, Adele. They came here on there own accord. Anyways, what are you doing here in Torrington? Last I heard you moved to New York” 
She smiled thoughtfully.
“Yes I did, I lived with my parents until I graduated. And then I went to collage. To learn about robotics. It served me well but I couldn't stay interested enough so I quit a year early. But for the time I was there I learned things I can use later on” 
I smiled and they all looked applaud.
“wow! Great to see you've done more with your life than I have. I mean look at me! My only skills are instruments and gymnastics” I laughed and so did she and our audience.
“Hey are you and Green Day going to the August Nights Talent Festival?” she asked perching up on a rock.
“I am, what about you guys?” I looked to Mike then to Jason. Then Tré and Billie.
“Sure thing” Billie announced his attendance.
“Yeah I think me and Jason are going to do a drama scene” Tré announced.
Jason rolled his eyes. 
“Make Billie or Mike do it!” he whined.
“or, why don't you ask lovely lovely Adele to help you” Jason added.
Adele smiled, appeased that they considered her.
“Well damn, if I was to even enter the festival, I don't know what I would even do, or play” I said aloud.
“Well if you want, I have an new assortment of songs that no one but our immediate family, ourselves and people at the studio have heard. I will offer you, this one time to play any one you'd like. But I'm not going about giving you a setlist, since there really isn't one.., we've only got a few to work with. And  your going to be as surprised as anyone else when the new album comes out. So just you tell me, exactly what kind of song you want. What do you want it to be about?” Billie stated. I had all but forgotten the recent blowout with Heather. With him and his band, it was like being with an normal group of people. Instead of being around a bunch of flunkies.
“Hatred” I said after little thinking. I already knew Heather and her boyfriend Nick would be there. And I wanted to get the point across.
“Hatred, violence, enemy things. I want Heather to know my hate for her!” even though she was Mike's cousin. (Myriah's boyfriend)
He wasn't fond of her either. No one here really was except Myriah, trader to all by letting that melon of a lady back here Every time with open arms.
“Hmm well your in luck! I've got just one song on the setlist like that, it has complex chords and notes, are you sure your ready?”
Billie asked, judging my guitar skills.
I rolled my eyes
“Dude,I've been playing since I met Adele. Bring it!”
He shook his head, preparing for certain challenge ahead of us.
“Alright, it's called "Know Your Enemy"”
He smiled brilliantly, but I broke in.
“geez, it's almost one! Who wants lunch?” I bursted.
Hands raised, Tré raised Adele's hand.
“Ok let's go get some lunch and get anything we may need for tonight, so be thinking if you want to try it and what you want to do”
We all got up dashing up to the house in a full out race.
“Ok one more question, who wants to eat out or eat here?” 
“Out!” everyone yelled.
“Alright! To the Green Mobile!”
We all ran to my car but you should have seen Billie's face when he saw it. It's utterly beautiful.
It is a shiny black convertible camero, with black leather seats with American idiot seat covers over them. A huge red heart grenade sticker over the trunk door. Green Day stickers all over the bumper and it is in overall top quality.
Billie was speechless, so he just said “Wow!” and so did all the others. We got in buckled up and pulled out of my cracking driveway.
“So what do you think about this obsession?” I laughed.
He shrugged and looked around thr car as he climbed in, “I don't even know what to say about this.” he grinned out the windshield. 
We sped down the cracked worn road up past Main-street Market and into the thicket of town. We pulled to a stop at an intersection. I had "Homecoming" playing at a relatively quite volume.
“What do you want for lunch?”
“Random” Tré called from the backseat. 
I thought about that.
“Alright!” I swerved when the light turned green speeding off for McDonalds.
“Wow, it's not often us, Green Day boys go to McDonalds ourselves”
”Why is that?” I asked digging through my scraggly purse.
“Publicity” Billie answered scratching his hair.
“I see” I was about to pull out my wallet then Billie stole it right out of my hands.
“I'm payin today, it's not fair to you to put up with the costs of unexpected guests. And Im not saying I'm filthy rich, just have a bit more layers of cash on me than you do” he looked proud at his statement.
“hey Billie, you don't even have your wallet with you”
He patted down the pockets that clearly weren't there.
“just this once” I got out of the car and walked up to the door.
“I'm payin” I finished. Pulled open the door and inside was a large café style lobby. A long counter, and hanging lights over each table. With modern style apparel. Such as lime peel green spritzy dividers. Egg shell white tabletops. And red and green diamond pattern on the seat fabric. 
We ordered and went to sit in a window booth. Mike sat next to Tré and carefully laid a piece of lettuce in his hair. Ironically he didn't notice.
He wore it for the rest of the trip at McDonalds.
We all laughed till we cried over a stupid joke I told them. People that sat near us were peeking over the dividers and giving us concerned expressions. They were probably thinking we were all mental retards. But why should I care? I'm with some of my favorite people on the face of the earth. So the rest of the world was blur. 
Our faces were all red and our eyes were watering when we left. Still we were laughing. Then it would be silent until someone in the car laughed again. Then it set off a chain reaction. I sniffed back the tears of laughter, to say
“It really wasn't that funny!” then we all bursted. It was in some ways a lot like drunk driving. We couldn't drive until the tears and all signs of laughter cleared my face. So we drove next door to Pamida. It was the only department store in town besides Family Dollar.
Inside everyone split off into groups to look at things for both their performances and just for pure fun. We got a load of dirty looks for being in the store in swimming suits. But they all looked good enough to be swimsuit models. But that didn't buy any brownie points with anyone in the store. The dirty looks continued to be given by elderly people, young children and teens. Particularly by parents of the children and teens. They all gave you looks of curiosity. Mostly the kids would run over to there parents and tug on there sleeve and say “Mommy, Mommy! Why are those people wearing swimsuits in the store?”
Then there was this one girl. About 14. She had shaggy black hair that hung in a halo around her round face. She had black makeup around her eyes. She reminded me of a girl version of Billie.
She looked up with no interest from her phone. Then her eyes widened, this was a blunt sign of a fan.
“Omg! Omg! Omg!! It's Billie Joe Armstrong! And Gloria!” she squealed.
Gloria? How did anyone know my name? I looked up at Billie with questioning eyes. He looked away from the question that lingered.
He looked back. I raised my eyebrows. He sighed.
“There were interviews after that one night, and I accidentally slipped out your name instead of the American Idiot”.
There was his answer.
“Billie Joe! Is the rest of your band with you??” she screamed excitedly.
“Umm, yeah they are around here somewhere”
“Oh Billie Billie Billie! I can't believe your here! Can I have your autograph? And a picture with you. If that's not to much to ask” she made a puppy face. That neither of us could just pass up.
Billie sighed, feeling the wipeout of defeat.
“Umm yeah sure. A quick picture and autograph to send you on your way. But just one thing can I ask of you in return?” 
“Yeah sure Billie! Anything for the greatest Punk guitarist in the world!” she squealed with joy.
“Tell all of your friends that me and Gloria, and my band are going to be playing tonight at the Entertainment Center at Pioneer park. For the August Nights Talent Festival. We are the uninvited guests coming to crash the party”
Billie smiled politely.
“Well hell yeah! Of corse I will! Now just sign this for me pretty please? Then I'll go hunt down Tré, Mike and Jason! I'm Sarah King by the way. Green Day fan extraordanar!”
Billie signed her American Idiot cd with a swish of his wrist.
Then she offered it to me to sign. I couldn't turn down my first signing. So I signed my full name, it took longer to write than Billie's did. I wrote; Gloria Andys. He wrote; Billie Joe. Then of course it may be better to just wrote half of your name if it's a long one.
She thanked us and took off at a maniac speed down the next isle. No doubt she was going to tackle whomever she came across first. 
“Nice girl” I said walking slowly down the isle. Looking at everything I passed. Tré ran up to us with a look of terror. Adele clutched his arm nervously.
“Billie! We've got to go! Some crazy girl tackled me. Begging for my autograph” he said breathlessly.
“Yeah we saw her a minute ago. She wanted to know where the rest of you were. By the way Tré, she will be at the festival tonight. So you'd better get used to her. Remember when we all got our first look at Gloria? Same difference. I mean look at her now, she's tame.” he patted my head and I growled at him. 
“Well almost” he chuckled.
Tré held the shocked expression on his face.  
“Gloria is wonderful! But she looks a bit like a woman version of you” Tré laughed. So did Adele. 
Billie rolled his eyes,
“Let's go” he grabbed my hand and then Tré's hand which was attached to Adele's. Pulling us along like a train. When we got back, everyone split off into separate groups to work on routines. Billie worked with me for an hour before I learned the whole song of "Know Your Enemy". I had it all down and then I was free to go get ready. We still had an hour and the day had flew by.

The evening neared, the boys, And girls were out in the living room. Myriah and Adele hit it off pretty well. I was pulling my hair back with an old brush. Pulling it up onto my signature style. Half of my layered cropped hair left untouched on the left side of my head. While the rest of my hair had been left to grow out longer than the other side. It was pulled back into a black ponytail.
I had a round face with a fairly pointed chin. Dark green eyes and long eyelashes.
I was an few inches shorter than Billie. I wore my favorite knee high black boots. A pair of leather jeans and a black lace corset over the top of a spaghetti strapped white puffy shirt. It looked like the shirt of a pirate. I breathed and looked at the clock. Twelve minutes, we'd best get going. I finished wrapping  a fake crystal belt around my waist as I walked out into the living room.
“Where's Billie?” I asked leaning against the wall.
“In his room fluffifying his hair” Mike said rolling his eyes. Mike has been with Billie Most of his life, they are both the same age but Mike is one inch or so higher than both Tré and Billie. This also makes Tré the shortest.
“Hmm I see. So he is preparing for his five minutes of small-town fame?” I asked.
“Mmhmm” Mike said flipping through some random guitar magazine that was in the heap on my coffee table.
I slid down the wall to sit cross legged on the floor next to the dark green couch where Mike sat. The other Mike sat across the room with Tré, Adele and Myriah. Mike and Myriah had returned from their rendezvous at the river twenty minutes ago and now were chatting to Green Day. I think that Myriah is having an hard time excepting my new statues of friends after all I'd been through swearing that id do it.
I took out my crappy folding phone. I was every bit aware of the fact that I had a nicer iPhone, but I always seemed to revert back to this one. But it's not the one that came with on tour.
Then the door down the hall swung open, revealing Billie Joe in a casual outfit.
A black button-down shirt, sleeves rolled up to his elbows. He had a black vest over the top. It was a classy style. But appeared punk on him. 
“It feels like it missing something, Gloria, your good at finding stuff that's wrong. What do you think is missing?” he asked me. I slid up and walked over to him. Then I circled him and smiled.
“You need a pendant on your vest” I announced.
I walked over into the kitchen and pulled open my junk drawer. Sifted through pens, pencils magnets and charms and little trinkets. I pulled out a sterling silver sheriff badge. It was a star with broad capital lettering. Spelling out "Sheriff". I fastened the pendant to the front of his vest. He pulled it up to view. Unpulling his tucked in shirt. I poked him in the stomach. He stuck his tongue out at me, then burst out laughing. 
I got together a basket of stuff. I loaded a six pack of beer into it. I don't drink but I know who does. I put some bottled water in too. We finished gathering and went out into the warm summer evening. We crossed the street and found a good place to set up. I spread out a blanket and laid our guitars out on one half of it. I chose my hand painted BJ guitar. Or in other names, Blue. Billie was rather fond of a shiny black guitar with white green day lettering on it with a bunch of stray hot pink stars on the body. Mike fancied a white squire bass guitar I had made to look like his. It even had the little black star on it. Jason wanted a regular guitar, but after raiding my collection of 64 guitars, that I keep in the racks in my bedroom closet, he found a pretty one he liked. It was a glossy white with black body piece. And detailed airbrushed roses and leaves trellising down the body. With an airbrushed tan tethern ribbon along the bottom read; Everlife.
It suited him despite his shy quietness.
We all, 8 of us settled down on the big blanket just as the sun was dipping behind orange clouds. More people were arriving and setting up. We waited until the host came out. The host this year was the manager of any source of entertainment festival in Torrington. Her name is Sheerly Olivers. She was very nice and I had known her since I was 18. Plus I had had the opportunity to work with her when she too, volunteered to work at Macy's Gymnasium. 
She ran up on the stage with a microphone in her hand.
“Welcome Welcome! To 2008's 7th annual August Nights Talent Festival! Over 50 performers tonight! Only 25 will win a seat in the finals! Let the fun begin with Yui Chon, her family originates from Tibet. And her talent is something extraordinary! Give her a warm welcome!”
Everyone clapped and time passed, each performer was talented but I didn't sweat it, I wasn't here to be in the finals, I was here to prove a point to Heather. She sat about ten feet away, she pretended not to see us. But I bet when we weren't looking, she was ogling.
I prepared and pulled the tattered crimson red guitar strap over my head.
“This next band originates from Oakland California! A lot of you know them and no one knew they were coming! They will be performing a new song with a very special guest! Please welcome Green Day and guest vocalist Gloria Andys!” she squealed with excitement as we swarmed silently onto the stage, taking our places.
“This is a very special song, with a very special dedication!” Billie announced. He looked at me to take it away.
“We would like to dedicate the lyrical meaning to my, worst enemy. Heather Ridenour!” I pulled back to began.
“Do you know the enemy? Do you know your enemy?” we began
“Do you know the enemy? Do you know your enemy? Well gotta know the enemy.”
“Violence is an energy against your Enemy. Silence is the Enemy 
“Do you know your enemy? 
Esurgency will rise, when the bloods been sacrificed. You'll be blinded by the lies in your eyes!”
“Violence is an energy, against your enemy. Silence is the enemy. Fucking to eternity. So give me give me revolution!” an epic guitar solo broke out between the four guitars onstage. Heathers face turned red with embarrassment and anger. She got up and stormed out of the scraggly grass center. We high fived each other  and laughed in boiling joy. Your probably thinking that that was really mean. But trust me. If you had been there while she destroyed my childhood memories, you'd think she was the meanest. 
We had gotten her back once and for all. But Heather is well known for coming back to stake her revenge. If that's even what you want to call it. It really just more of having her presence that's the trouble. 
“Oh my god! Billie, we got her back! Oh thank you all so much!” I hugged each of my accomplices.
And I turned toward the mic. I yanked it of it's stand, 
“We will be back!” I bowed and dropped the mic sending a blaring squeal through the speakers making everyone cringe.
We all danced in a happy circle behind the makeshift stage.
I was so happy, I didn't feel like I'd ever need to yell again. Just then a little girl came around the building, “Gloria, you were amazing! And so was my all-time favorite band! Do you guys think you could sign my guitar?” she asked us. She couldn't be any older than six or seven. And she listens to a cussy band like Green Day. More power to her I guess.
“Sure thing sweetie” I knelt down to her hight to sign her gemstone covered pink acoustic guitar. Her pink tutu bounced around as she did a happy dance. 
“There you go” I slid the fully autographed guitar back into her hands. She had requested one from all of us, especially her favorite member, Jason. Now Jason isn't a incredibly popular Green Day member. Just an unofficial guitarist. So he does not have many people who favorite him over Billie or Tré. Even Mike, hasn't had as many pure for him fans.
She giggled with joy and skipped away to show her parents. 
Its always good to help someone who thinks your privileges are amazing even when you, yourself haven't noticed them.
I looked up into the sky as music from other musicians filled the park. Stars filled every inch of the sky as the ghost of the moon crept in from the south. The sun had disappeared leaving the earth colder in it's tracks. It was still easily 40 degrees out. The north sky exploded with shades of orange, yellow and vermillion. 
A beautiful sunset mixed with the darker shades of violet and blue above.
“Let's go watch the rest of the festival” I said, grabbing Billie's hand to tow him toward our blanket. We clapped and cheered for everyone else. I had only taken the opportunity to preform to humiliate Heather. And since that occurred, I was happy and didn't want to win a spot in in the finals. If I did, I'd hand it down to the runner-up.
“Time to announce the finalists!” Sheerly bursted. A smile of joy as her eyes kept landing on me. I had no reason to feel self conscience. But I couldn't keep the nagging suspicion that I'd gained a place in the finals. And in Annie's heart for most effective music. I sighed and kept my eyes down. Avoiding the bustling skinny woman on the stage, the stage that less than twenty-four hours ago, had not existed.
“Our finalists are...”
She read off all 25. I was surprised to hear my own name among them. Along with Green Day's and Adele's. So for that I got a lot of dirty looks.
”Thank you to all of our sponsors! And keep working for next year! To our winners, all wonderfully talented! Must split from groups they preformed with tonight. To come up with their own song, style or whichever talent you portray. Good luck and goodnight!” Sheerly  ran off stage to help with cleaning up.
I knew my face was probably bleached white right now.
“I need to go talk to Sheerly really quick” Billie nodded folding up the blanket while talking to my chattering sister.
I ran up to Sheerly.
“Hey Sheerly! You were a really good host tonight! I was just wondering if if the winner might decide to, you know pool out and hand the opportunity to a runner-up. How would one go about dropping out?” I asked, beating around the bush.
It caught her by surprise.
“Well Gloria, why ever would you want to drop out if you came here to win?” she asked setting down a box of light supplies.
“I mean even if you wanted too, you really couldn't, the judges decision is final. Unless your entirely incapable. So even then, it just can't be handed down to just anyone” she said picking up the box and started carrying it to her truck. Making it very clear to me that this conversation was over.
“Ok I'll preform” I mumbled walking back to Billie to gather the rest of the stuff. I breathed in the fresh cool air coming of the river a couple hundred feet away.
It wouldn't take long for me to get to sleep tonight, not while I'm so tired. We walked back to the house under the falling shiny stars.