As I Follow This Little Lies

"Hey! It's Spike and I'm here with Strawberry Acid!" DJ said into the microphone, with excitement heard in his voice. "It's been only three weeks since their album came out! People are crazy about your music. How did you do that, huh?"

"Oh..., that's a good question." Allison said.

"I guess it's all because we had luck?" Sydney asked, looking at her band mates.

"Or it's the video!" Dave smirked at Sydney. "That black dressss..."

"Shut up!" she covered his mouth with her hand and then Dave licked her hand. "Ew!" she kicked him on the shin and he fell from the chair making Sydney laugh at him as he cursed the day he met Sydney.

"All right, don't kill yourselves, guys!" Spike laughed "What do you think about... about... Dookie? I know that you're from the same place."

"Aha! You couldn't think of a better question, so you ask about Green Day, huh?" Sydney pouted at Spike, crossing her arms.

"What can I say..." he shrugged.

"Dookie is cool." Allison replied "Their earlier stuff is sure worth listening."

"So, you're fans?"

"No!" Matt and Dave exclaimed, raising their arms into the air.

"No way. It could be more likely Sydney, b-"

"Matt!"

"Oh, come on. It's truth." he laughed silently at desperate look she threw him. Spike looked confused at the siblings and glanced at Allison with raised eyebrows. She shook her head with a small smile on her face.

"Is there some interesting story you'd like to share with us?" he asked expectantly, thinking about some great news from their private life or perhaps Green Day’s. "Sydney? You look like you're hiding something."

"There's nothing to hide. Ali and Syd know the guys pretty good. They're friends. Matt wanted to kick Billie's ass not once-"

"But that's it! We wish them luck!" Sydney cut off Dave.

"No, no. Actually I'd like to hear something more about them." Spike smirked.

"Oh no... You’re their fan, huh? You perhaps want to know everything about their girlfriends or-" Sydney trailed off.

"I knew you don't want to talk about us!" Allison exclaimed accusingly, pointing a finger at the DJ.

"I'm just getting the useful information!" he protested.

"No, you're not." Allison smirked. "Whatever. They're the best guys I’ve ever met."

"Hey!" Matt and Dave said at the same time.

"What! That's truth!" Allison raised her eyebrows at them.

"Since our band needs to discuss something, we'll be back after a short time! Green Day - Longview!"

After 30 minutes of played music and some more questions about Strawberry and their current tour, it was time for a question from the fans. Spike smiled at the band and spoke into the microphone.

"It seems like someone has already called us. Hey, what's your name a-" the DJ even get the chance to finish his sentence when an all too familiar voice spoke and it wasn't someone Sydney would like to hear or Matt missed so much. Sydney had a very bad feeling about the speech the person could make. Her mother wasn't the one who would care how she might talk bad about her daughter.

"Mattie, I knew you'd be someone one day! You always were a good child, unlike your sister." Matt smacked his head with his hand and rolled his eyes.

"Please, stop it...” he said in a whiny voice. Sydney looked like she wanted to throw up, hearing the fake sweetness in the voice of her mother.

"And... Sydney. If it wasn't for Matt, you'd be probably some drug addict or a slut, if you're not already! I told you that boy is a trouble. I told you that Armstrong won't stay with you forever. No. You had to prove me wrong, but t seems like it didn't work out! Don't you come back home crying, sweetie. You just never listen and you pay for this! That Billie Joe's not a boy who'd stay with someone like you!"

The line suddenly went dead and the silence filled the studio. Spike cleared his throat.

"Well, that was... unexpected." he looked at Sydney, who was on the verge of tears. Matt put an arm around his sister shoulders and pulled her into a hug.

"I hate to tell this, but I can't call a mother someone, who treats my little sister like this." he said in a low voice. "That's ridiculous! What a mother is she?"

"It's okay Matt." Sydney said quietly. "Sorry that everybody had to hear this."

"No! It's not okay!" Matt exclaimed.

"Calm. Down" Allison said through gritted teeth. Matt nodded his head, looking at her. The exact moment there was yet another phone call.

"Hello! I'm a huge fan of Strawberry Acid. I'd like to know... um... does the album has some special meaning? It seems like it to me. And now when by accident I heard about something going on with Billie Joe Armstrong...”
Sydney's eyes went huge and she looked nervously at Allison.

"Most of the songs were written by Syd. I wrote maybe 3-4 songs? If it makes a sense as a story... We never thought about it like that."

"I did!" Dave chimed in. "It's a love story. Ha! It's like... the girl was left by the guy and she still loves him, she's still waiting for him, thinking about him. She rants a little about life... like Ali wrote... the girl misses the guy, but she finally realizes she should move on, but she still remembers everything about him... uh... then would be Stop Playing God...”

"You obviously got no idea what our album is about, you know." Sydney said with a sigh. "You made it up."

"No... I see the connection."

"Yea, in your sick mind."

"What about Billie Joe Armstrong?" Spike asked.

"What about him?" Matt asked raising an eyebrow. Sydney sighed.

"Well, since it's already clear from what he heard we were together. The end of story."

"So, Dave said the album is a story, so that means you're the girl from the song?"

"Hell no!" Sydney said frustrated, thinking at the same time that Spike didn't know how close he was to the true answer, but she didn't want anyone to get into her private life at the start. Possibly it already would make some bad stuff to both Green Day's and Strawberry Acid career's. She already could see the headlines.

The rock’n‘roll roll romance. The whole truth about Billie Joe and Sydney.
The media were evil.

***
The program was almost finished. Now it was just one last question and guys would be free, finally.
"Billie Joe, I've heard from reliable source that you and Sydney of Strawberry Acid were married. Could you tell us something about this episode of your life? Is Sydney-"

"Sydney's nothing like her mother talks about!" Trè exclaimed, looking angrily at the woman that kept the interview. "All of this is some bullshit!"

"Syd is a good person. I don't understand, why people who don't know her say all this things." Mike shrugged. Billie smiled slightly at his friends and looked at the interviewer.

"Yes, we were married. It's the best girl I’ve ever met and I hate when people say stuff like that about her. She doesn't deserve all of this."

"So, why did you divorce." he merely shrugged and smiled slightly.

"You know, it's not a simple thing. I guess it's my fault, you know. I'm happy that she made it with her band."

"We'll be back to that topic, I guess." woman smiled slightly at the guys. "I hope you'll visit us again, guys, and have fun on tomorrow’s concert."

"We're sure we'll have." Mike laughed slightly.

When they left the TV studio they got into the car that was already waiting for them to take them to their hotel.
"What a hell, huh?" Mike said sighing. "Her mother made a pretty big mess. Good that she got some true friends. She's a sensitive person.”

"It's all so complicated. Damn." Billie closed his eyes and laid his head on the cold car window. "It's some kind of a nightmare."

"Hey! I'd like to meet Syd on some concert! Do you know where they play?"

"Not where we do." Billie replied. "Forget about this."

"Why? You won't stop me from seeing a friend, Mr. Rock starrrr!"

"Another nightmare!" Billie threw his hands into the air, looking at his friends. "It's crazy. I didn't expect anything when we signed the contract. Well, seems like we can't do much about it now."

"It's good." Mike said. "At least now."

***
The tour bus wasn't anything special. Not for a band that was new to this crazy world. Even if their single was played almost as often as 'Longview' it didn't make them big. It was just the beginning. Their music was good, but the news about Sydney being Billie's ex made them quiet known in the music world. They didn't like how it turned out. No. Sydney avoided personal questions like fire. Fans were shocked when Billie confirmed these things about both of them. The interview with Sydney's mother put her in a bad light. She couldn't feel any worse, but she tried not to show it affected her in any way.
There were questions like What did he see in her? mostly asked by screaming Billie's fans.

The bus had 4 bunk beds, little kitchen, little bathroom and some closet to put bags in it. Closer to the front of the bus they had TV there with couch and two armchairs. They didn't complain about it at all. It wasn't some luxurious place, but they loved their new home.

Another of their concerts took place on some festival and they didn't really know who was going to play there. They knew they couldn't fuck it up. They had to do their best. It was their dream coming true. It was a way to show everyone they could play good music even on stage. Not only in the studio. Time to prove that Strawberry Acid wasn't only a band of Billie Joe's ex.

Billie Joe was walking down the corridor, with his hands in his pockets, heading to the dressing room. He was whistling one of The Ramones songs, while walking. His eyes fell on the girl walking the opposite direction he headed. She had straight, elbow length, black hair with red ends, wearing tight black jeans and a red top. He eyed her for a while, turning around, but still walking in his direction.

"God damn it!" she said frustrated and spun around, noticing Billie staring at her now wide eyed and not whistling anymore. She stood there like frozen; her knees felt week and her brain worked in a slow motion. She was confused. Her mouth slightly opened in shock.

Billie opened his mouth staring at her with either shock or amazement. He studied her face for a while as if he was wondering, if that was really the same girl he remembered.

She had eyes rimmed heavily with black eyeliner and red eye shadow. There was no doubt. It was Sydney.
She stared at him, looking nervous just like she didn't know what to do with herself. Like a lost, little girl in the zoo.
Billie closed his mouth, getting over the shock and he relaxed slightly. Still, he eyed her with a frown on his face.

"Sydney?" he asked, titling his head to the side.

"Billie." she breathed, staring at him dazed. She snapped out of it quickly, narrowing her eyes and running a shaky hand through her hair. "I-I mean... hi Billie." a nervous smile crept onto her face.

"What the hell are you doing here?"