Dusk & Summer

tom.
apr 13, 2005.
london, england.
After my interview, I decided to go for a wander around London instead of going back to my hotel room and moping miserably for the rest of the day. Plus I never really got the chance to do this before, when we toured. You know, see the sights and stuff.

So first I got the tube to Piccadilly Circus, then I wandered around SoHo for a while before passing through China Town. After that I went to Leicester Square and by that time, I was starving. I knew about this amazing little pizza place in Camden, plus I wanted to go there anyway, so I got the underground and walked the familiar yet at the same time, pretty unfamiliar road towards the Lock. It was sunny, but still a bit cold. Winter was leaving but it was taking it's time here.

"Thank you." I said, five minutes later, and took a bite out of the piping hot pizza as I walked away from the stall. It really was the best pizza in the world, and within a few minutes the slice was completely gone. I wandered around the Lock; the happy and busy atmosphere lifting my spirits and keeping my mind off the crushing weight of stress I had to look forward to back home.

I shook my head politely at those in the food stalls, pressuring me into buying noodles or sushi, and wandered past the many stalls that only sold clothes for girls with no interest. The stalls selling artwork - those were the ones I studied intently. There was this one stall right in the middle of the Lock, with different sized painted blocks. They all had different graffiti on them, and were actually amazing. I was tempted to buy all of them, and was considering the largest - and most expensive - when I realised that I'd first have to find somewhere new to live, or wait a long, long time for the gruelling process of fighting for my house to be over. There wasn't any point buying it.

My mood suddenly deflated, I wandered away from the stall and began considering whether it was time to go back to my hotel room, when the sound of infectious laughter caught my ears. I turned to see a somewhat familiar face. A girl standing in a stall, currently chatting to someone laden with shopping bags. She had long blonde hair and was wearing a lot of jewellery, along with a dress and a pair of heels. I couldn't quite place her for a second, til my eyes landed on the array of clothes and jewellery by her side. It suddenly clicked. She was the girl I bought that jewellery off for Jen, the last time I was here. That girl with the infectious smile and tinkling laugh.

After hovering nervously for a few moments, deciding whether or not to go over there, I slowly started walking towards the stall. As I reached it the other customer left, and the girl turned towards me with a smile on her face.

"Hey ther- wait. I recognise you." She said, placing a hand on her hip and cocking her head to the side. I smiled a little shyly.

"Yeah I...I've been here before..b-but it was ages ago. I'm surprised you remember me."

She suddenly snapped her fingers and pointed at me.

"Mr. DeLonge! From the band. Of course I remember you." She smiled warmly and I felt the heat creep up my neck and flush my cheeks.

"Call me Tom. And you're...An..Anna?"

"Annabelle, yes that's right." She nodded with another smile. I grinned and ruffled my messy hair - I really couldn't be bothered to sort it out when I woke up in a painful rush this morning.

"So what are you doing back in England?" She asked me, and I cleared my throat a little awkwardly.

"I um..I came to do an interview for a magazine. About..about my band's hiatus." I said, and she raised her eyebrows before her expression changed to one of recognition.

"Ohhh yes, I remember hearing about that on the radio." Was all she said, which I was grateful for. It was pretty painful talking about it. About my two old best friends and the fact that we probably won't ever speak again.

I watched as Annabelle turned towards the table laden with clothes, and began folding those that had been picked up by passers-by, and just dropped back down again carelessly.

"My wife loved her necklace and earrings, by the way." I said. It was only a slight lie. The only reason she didn't like them was because it was me that had bought them for her, I realised with a slight pang shooting through my heart. I ignored it and felt my lips tugging into a smile at the sight of the happy grin on Annabelle's face.

"Did she really? I'm glad."

She sat down in that old wooden chair and picked up a skirt she was currently sewing a collection of odd shaped buttons onto.

"I had a chance to see some of the sights in London for the first time today. Normally I was always too busy on tour." I told her, and she looked up with a grin.

"Where did you go?" She asked me, and I began to tell her.

"Leicester Square is so much better at night." She said when I finished. "How long are you here for? I'll take you there one night."

I couldn't help the smile that smeared itself across my face when she said that.

"Okay, cool." I replied, and she looked up at me again and smiled.

"Annie I'm back, you can go now." I suddenly heard a cockney accent even stronger than Annabelle's from behind me, and I turned around to see a girl with mid-length brown hair. She was carrying two take-away cups with tiny whisps of steam curling from the gaps in the lids. She brushed past me with a pleasant grin and handed one to Annabelle.

"Ah mate, thanks." Annabelle said gratefully, and her accent made me smile to myself. She cradled the steaming cup in her hands as she stood up from the chair, and the other girl took her place.

"I'll see you later yeah?" Annabelle said to her, picking up a plain black bag from underneath the table and slipping it over her shoulder. The other girl nodded and took a sip of her drink.

"Oh erm, aren't you going to finish serving this man here?" She asked Annabelle, who looked at me and smiled.

"I don't think he was planning on buying anything, were you Mr. DeLonge?"

I smiled back and shook my head, just as the other girl snapped her fingers.

"DeLonge?! As in Tom DeLonge?! I knew I recognised you!"

My cheeks darkened slightly and I coughed nervously.

"Where are my manners." Anna said, a wry smile on her lips. "Mel, this is Tom DeLonge...as you already know. Mr. DeLonge, this is my roommate Mel."

"Please just call me Tom." I begged for the second time, before smiling at Mel. "Hi."

"Pleasure to meet you." She replied, leaning forward and holding out her hand for me to shake.

"Well I'll be off now. Anything else you want me to get that we haven't written on the list?" Anna said, rifling through her bag absently as she spoke.

"No. Oh actually- erm no I don't think so."

Annabelle nodded and turned to leave, before Mel spoke again.

"Oh no wait, we need more shampoo. I used the last of it this morning."

"Okay. See you later."

As Anna turned to leave, she smiled warmly at me.

"Where are you off to now, then?" She asked me as she began walking away from the stall, which meant I started walking alongside her. I shrugged.

"Nowhere. I don't want to go back to my hotelroom, but I don't know anyone here."

I blushed a little and laughed as she crowed sympathetically.

"Well why don't you come shopping with me? I'm sure it'll be more fun than sitting in a lonely hotel room all night. Well you know, slightly more fun."

I smiled at her. "Okay, sounds good."

"Brilliant." She replied, grinning up at me as she walked along beside me with a continuous spring in her step. This girl's attitude was infectious, and my mood was lifted almost instantly as I watched her from the corner of my eye.

"It's just a short walk round the corner to Sainsbury's." She told me, swinging her bag with each step. I laughed, and watched as she drained the last of her drink and tossed the empty cup into a trash can we were passing.

"Okay." I said, stuffing my hands into my pockets a little shyly. I normally wasn't very shy at all, but Annabelle's presence could overpower anyone's.

"So when are you back home to America, then?" She asked me, as we walked through the sliding doors into the brightly lit store.

"Couple of days." I said, cringing inwardly. I was dreading going back home and having to start facing all the divorce settlements. Anna glanced at me as she grabbed a trolley and began pushing it along with us.

"You don't sound very happy about that. Aren't you looking forward to seeing your wife?"

My mood deflated as the last word left her lips. I stuffed my hands further into my pockets and fixed my eyes on a packet of sugar on one of the shelves.

"Well uh, actually- my wife and I have separated now."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Anna said, stopping and looking at me. I shrugged and gave her an awkward smile.

"It's alright, it was for the best."

"Well, the less said about that at the moment the better, don't you think?" Anna said with an air of finality about her, sensing my uncomfort and obvious slight pain on the subject. I smiled.

"Definitely."

"Well then, let's have a look at this list." She pulled the list out of her bag and skimmed her eyes down it.

"Milk first." She said, pushing the trolley forward. "Come on, Mr. DeLonge."

"Call me Tom, please!" I begged, and she laughed.



"Erm...would you rather be...eaten by a bear or...a giant spider." Anna asked me after sucking thoughtfully on her lower lip as we slowly made our way down the road, our arms laden with shopping bags.

I shivered with disgust. "Bear. Definitely."

Anna laughed as she strolled along beside me, swinging the bags in her hands as she walked.

"Here's one - would you rather lick a cat's ass or eat a moth?"

"That's a hard one." She replied, sucking on the inside of her cheek. I grinned lopsidedly as I watched her out of the corner of my eye. Eventually she said, "I think I'd have to go with the cat's arse. I hate moths."

"Ha, same." I laughed, and she joined in.

"We're both quite disgusting." She said, as we turned a corner. It was just starting to get dark, even though it was still early in the evening. Anna seemed to share her thoughts with mine, because she spoke up into the sudden silence with, "I hate the winter, it gets dark so early."

"Well, it's nearly spring." I replied, the sharp, cold air stinging the inside of my nose pleasantly.

"It'll still take ages to get warm again. It always does."

I suddenly realised that all she was wearing was a thin dress whereas I was in a t shirt, zip up top and jacket.

"Aren't you freezing?!" I asked, and she grinned up at me and shook her head.

"Not really, I don't really feel the cold."

I was silent for a few seconds, but just as I opened my mouth to speak Anna said, "But that doesn't mean I don't want the summer to come."

I laughed. "I was just about to say."

Another silence took over, but it wasn't all that awkward. There hadn't been many silences the whole while we'd been shopping; Anna talked a lot which meant I talked more than normal too. But she was interesting. Everything about her was fascinating. Her clothes, her hair, her face, her voice, what she said, what she did... She was one of the most animated people I'd ever met - she was one of those few people I could actually just sit and watch all day.

"Ohhh, they do the best hot chocolates in here!" Anna suddenly exclaimed, rushing forward and standing at the window of a cafe that glittered with the fairy lights sprinkled over the windows. I followed her and stopped by her side.

"Yeah?" I replied absently, looking into the somewhat busy indoors.

"Come on, I'll buy you one as a way of saying thank you for coming shopping with me." Anna said, smiling up at me before pushing open the door before I could protest. A smile slowly spread across my face as I followed her inside, and the pleasant sound of busy chatter hit my ears, along with the noises of cutlery hitting plates and oven doors slamming from the kitchen.

I looked around for Anna, having lost her in the mass of tables, chairs and talking people.

"Tom- Tom!" I suddenly heard, and quickly looked around until I saw Anna sitting at a little table in the corner by the window, waving her arm to catch my attention. I carefully slipped between the tables, apologising to the people and chairs I knocked with the many shopping bags I was carrying, before I reached Anna. I grinned at her as I placed all the bags on the floor, before slipping into the seat opposite her and peeling off my jacket.

"Seriously, best hot chocolates ever." Anna said again, looking through her bag. I laughed.

"I'll have to take your word for it til I try one." I said with a wink, and she grinned at me before standing up from her seat.

"I'll be right back." She told me, brushing down her dress before slipping her way between the tables. I watched her for a few seconds, before turning back to the table and resting my arms on the surface. I looked around me interestedly, a smile constantly fixed onto my face. Today was turning out far better than yesterday.

Sparkling fairy lights from the window on my left made patterns on the table, which I traced with my finger until Anna appeared back in front of me as she slid into her seat. She gave me a warm smile and placed her bag back under the table.

"It's nice here." I said, smiling back at her before looking around me again. She nodded enthusiastically.

"I love it here. I come here a lot. The food's good." She reached down and into her bag again, before pulling out a white cloth hair band. She winked at me with a grin as she slipped it over her head and made sure all her hair was off her face. Suddenly a tall, dark haired waiter appeared at the side of the table, and set two big, fat mugs of hot chocolate, topped with mounds of whipped cream and a chocolate flake sticking out one side on each, down in front of us both.

"Two large deluxe hot chocolates." He said, and Anna smiled up at him.

"Thanks." She said, and I echoed her faintly. As he walked off Anna picked up her spoon and scooped up some cream.

"Mmm." She mumbled as she popped it into her mouth. I laughed and picked up my own spoon to copy her.

"How much was it?" I said, after draining off the last of my hot chocolate. I got my wallet out of my pocket and opened it before looking up at Anna expectantly. She gulped down the last of her own while shaking her head.

"No, no. You're not paying for it. It's my way of saying thank you for keeping me company."

"But it was my pleasure. And I'm not letting you pay for me." I replied indignantly, pulling out a five pound note and sliding it across the table towards her.

"Just take that." I said, and Anna sat back in her chair, and folded her arms across her chest.

"No." Is all she said, and I stared at her helplessly.

"Take it!"

"No."

"Take it!"

"No! You're not paying! I'm not taking it and there's nothing you can do about it."

I stared at her in exasperation for a few moments, before rolling my eyes and stuffing the note back into my wallet. She smirked at me and reached under the table to pick up her bag and shopping. As she stood up, I quickly gathered the rest of her shopping that I was carrying and followed her out of the small, warm cafe.

"So where are you off to now?" She asked me as we stood on the wet pavement.

"Back to my hotel I guess." I replied, and she nodded and smiled up at me.

"Well, thank you for coming shopping with me." She said, holding out her hands to take the rest of her shopping from me.

"Would you like me to walk you home?" I asked quickly. "I mean, you won't be able to carry all this by yourself."

After a slight pause, Anna smiled and nodded.

"Okay, thanks." She said, and we began walking down the road at a comfortable pace.

"It's a really short walk, just up the road here." She told me, and I replied with, "Okay." but I wouldn't have minded however long the walk was.

"By the way, this just means that you owe me a hot chocolate." Anna said to me with a little smirk as we wandered down the dark, empty road. I smiled slowly.

"Okay, sure." I said, then made sure to leave a pause so as to not seem too keen. "What are you doing tomorrow?"

"What's tomorrow?" She asked me absently.

"Umm...friday."

"I'm working on the stall in the morning."

"Oh right."

There's a small silence, before I clear my throat nervously.

"Would uh..would you want to maybe, show me around London a bit? You know..to some of the sights I haven't seen. You can take me to Leicester Square when it gets dark. And I can repay you for the hot chocolate."

I smiled at her nervously as she grinned back at me.

"Of course, that sounds like fun. Mel takes over from me on the stall at 12, so meet me there at about quarter to; is that alright?"

"Yeah sure!" I said. "Sounds good."

"S'just here..." Anna said after a few moments, stopping in front of a gate leading up to an old, tall house. She rooted around in her bag for a few seconds until she pulled out her keys.

"Thank you for walking me home." She said, smiling up at me. I grinned back shyly.

"It's alright." I mumbled, as she gently pried the shopping out of my hands.

"So I'll see you tomorrow yeah?"

"Yeah! Yeah, sure, at 11.45 right?"

"Yep."

There was a slight pause, before I coughed nervously and scratched the back of my head.

"Well um..I..."

I held out my hand and gave a short, nervous laugh. Anna laughed and shook my hand, before giving me one final smile and turning to open the gate. I watched her walk up the drive to her house, before turning and wandering back down the road towards the tube station we'd passed on the way.

I stuffed my hands into my pockets as I waited for the tube to arrive. I felt my phone in my pocket and pulled it out to see the time; 9.09 pm. Man, I've been with Anna for ages.

I heard the sound of squealing brakes, snapping me out of my thoughts, and a few seconds later the tube appeared and slowly slid to a halt in front of me. The compartment I got into was almost empty, and I threw myself down into a seat with a sigh. It was quite a while til my stop, and I entertained myself by reading every single advert on the walls of the compartment. Which wasn't very entertaining.

When I reached my stop, I got out of the station as quick as possible and hurried the short walk to my hotel. When I got into my room, I quickly stripped off whilst walking over to my bed and sat down on the edge in just my boxers, before picking up the remote and flicking on the TV. Then I stood up and walked into the bathroom, where I started the shower and left it to get hot as I wandered back into the bedroom. I realised how hungry I was, so I picked up the room service menu and threw myself down onto the bed. After skimming through it quickly, I picked up the phone and rang down to reception.

"Hi, can I order some room service please?" I asked, and a polite British accent replied.

"Certainly sir, to which room would that be?"

"411. Um can I have a bottle of still mineral water, and um, the steak and fries please? Medium."

"Of course, sir. That will be delivered to your room within the next half hour."

"Great, thanks."

I hung up and quickly removed my boxers, before walking into the bathroom and climbing into the shower. I rang my fingers through my hair, then squirted some complimentary shampoo into my hands and rubbed it into my hair. Once I'd washed it all out, I covered myself in shower gel and stood under the shower til it was all washed off. I climbed out of the shower and wrapped a towel around my waist, before rubbing my hair with another and wandering back into the bedroom. I sat back down on the edge of the bed as I dried off my hair and watched the TV, before dropping my towel and pulling on a clean pair of boxers and a t shirt. I took both the towels back into the bathroom and hung them over the rack, then there was a rapping at the door. I quickly went to answer it, and a well dressed member of staff pushed a small trolley into the room.

"Your water and steak and chips, sir." He said politely. "Along with a complimentary dessert."

"Oh, awesome. Thanks."

I pressed a tip into his palm as we shook hands, before he tipped his head slightly and left the room, shutting the door behind him. I grabbed all the food and my water, before climbing into bed and beginning to eat. I hadn't realised just how hungry I was before I got back to the hotel, but the plates were clear within twenty minutes. I put everything back onto the tray but kept the water bottle by my bed, before switching off the light. The flickering from the TV made shadows dance across the room as I lay down in the comfortable bed and turned onto my side. After a while, I turned off the TV and threw the room into darkness.

I lay my head back down on the pillow and stared in front of me into the dark for a little while, remembering my day with a faint smile. Then my eyes began to get heavy, but a small smile still played around my lips as I shut them. I fell asleep a much happier man than I had the night before.