Feed the Fire

About a week later the tour arrived in The Big Easy or rather what was left of New Orleans. The city well over a year later was still ravaged from Hurricane Katrina. They were playing the newly renovated Super Dome, but everyone was uneasy and cranking at each other. Sabrina decided it was the angry spirits of those who suffered there which were making everyone a little off balance.

Mike seemed to be most effected by this. Instead of his normal mellow self, he was angry and nothing anyone could say or do was right in his eyes that day. He was snipping at the entire crew and even to his friends and band mates. The longer he sat in that dressing room, the angrier he seemed to get. He was being such an ass the Billie and Tre and the rest of the band kicked him out of their room and directed him to not come back until he had a better attitude.

Mike sulked down the corridor not really having anywhere is mind to go. He had his head down and not paying attention when he brushed up against Beth who was coming from the opposite direction. "Watch it Rock Star," she mumbled rather snarklily. She didn't even realize it had come out that way; it was just out of habit she talked to him like that. Beth continued to walk past Mike not noticing the look on his face in response to her comment.

As she walked away, he snaked out his arm and grabbed a hunk of hair on the back of her head and pulled her back into him. He guided her body around to face him and he just towered above her glaring into her eyes. She didn't even know she had began to shake when he literally growled at her, "What did you say bitch?"

Beth's eyes went wide at the tone in his voice and the violence that seemed to bubble underneath the surface. She realized with a start that Mike looked ready to kill her at the drop of a hat. "N... n... .not... nothing," she managed to babble out. That seemed to be the wrong answer as she watched Mike seem to get even taller and angrier than before. She was caught off guard when he shoved her none too gently into the wall behind her.

She collided with the solid object with a thump which brought tears to her eyes, but she didn't allow them to fall. Instead she almost cowered when he erased the distance between then and began to shout at her. "God damn, you make me so mother fucking angry you fucking bitch! I just wanna..." he growled as he reached his hands toward her neck as if about to strangle her, but not. It didn't even register in his brain that Beth had begun to whimper from his rough treatment and words. "You're not even worth my time... " he muttered as he shoved her to the side and turned around and stomped away.

Beth stumbled as she tried to regain her balance. But once again something in the act of him physically walking away from her triggered some long ago memory and soon her own hatred began to course through her veins. She watched him jiggle a door handle to see if the room was open. As he found success and pushed open the door; a cry erupted from her throat as she lunged at him, jumping onto his back. She was screaming something about 'you don't walk away from me,' as she tried to choke him from her vantage point.

Mike was livid that she was coming after him now. With a roar that rivaled a lion's, he reached behind him and grabbed another handful of her hair and tossed her from his back and onto a nearby couch. As she was being tossed through the air like a sack of potatoes she was able to land a kick to his shin which brought him to his knees. "Fucking cunt!" he screamed in pain as he feel to the floor in front of the couch.

"Fucking bastard!" she screamed back at the man. Mike started coming after her so she landed a ringing smack to his cheek before he climbed up over top of her and pushed her down into the couch. Beth struggled as she felt his weight pin her down. In the struggle she brought her face up to where his was leaning down trying to keep her still. They were just inches apart as they scoured each other's faces before they claimed each other in an aggressive kiss.

An hour or so later the two re-appeared in the hallway. Mike's mood had lifted and he returned to Green Day's dressing room with a new attitude. Beth returned to Sabrina's band dressing room with no one the wiser of what went on between her and Mike. As she went into her travel bag, she realized with a start that she was out of her medication. "I need to go to The Wall, anyone know if one is around here?"

"The Wall?" Toby asked with a frown.

The noise coming from Sabrina caught everyone by surprise since it had been a while since they heard the sound of her laughter. "The Wall; god I love Dane Cook," she said when she finally got control of herself. "Walgreen's Toby; Dane Cook calls it 'The Wall'."

"Ohhh," he said with a look of understanding coming over his face. "I can get someone to take you to one. I'm sure one of the locals knows the whereabouts of 'The Wall'," Toby said complete with air quotes around 'The Wall'.

"I hope so; I'm out of my medication and they will refill it from any Walgreen's location," Beth explained.

"You're on medication?" Toby asked.

Beth sighed, "Yea, you know... women's medication."

Another look of understanding came across Toby's face. "Okay, I'll get someone to drive you."

"I'll go too, Beth if you don't mind. I need more Rolaids; I'm almost out already." Sabrina piped up.

Toby left the room to make arrangements for a driver to take Sabrina and Beth to the drug store. Within 15 minutes, the two women were loaded into a van and being whisked away through downtown New Orleans in search for 'The Wall'. Within moments their destination loomed in front of them and the van pulled into the parking lot where both women left the confines of the van and entered the confines of the store.

Beth went straight to the pharmacy while Sabrina just wandered the aisles. She went down the Halloween setups but for some reason didn't feel like celebrating her favorite holiday. She let her fingers ghost over some spooky figurines as her mind was somewhere else. She paused at the baby Halloween costumes as a thought began to nag at her. The longer she stood there, the more the thought blossomed into a full idea. Sabrina was finally able to move past the display when she realized with a start that she was late by almost two full months.

She left the seasonal aisle and moved toward the feminine hygiene aisle. The older woman lingered over the various tests and when she decided on one in particular she went to scope out where Beth was first. When she spied Beth; Sabrina grabbed the test and pulled some money out of her wallet and walked toward the younger woman.

Beth was standing browsing through the vitamin section as she waited for her script to be filled. All of a sudden Sabrina was shoving something into one of her hands and pressing money into the other. Beth took a look at was being shoved into her hand "What the fuck? I don't need this; that's why I getting my script filled."

"Beth, please just buy it."

"Why... ohhhhhhh... " Beth said with her eyes going wide as she finally understood what was going on. "Why can't you just buy it?"

Sabrina sighed, "I can't be seen buying a pregnancy test. If I'm recognized, I'm screwed; god I'd be hung by the tabloids."

"Okay Sab, I'll do it on one condition; you take the test as soon as we get back."

"Okay, fine, whatever... please just buy it," Sabrina muttered as she quickly distanced herself from Beth.

"God I don't get fuckin' paid enough for this shit... " the younger woman mumbled as her name was called to pick up her script.

Upon returning to the venue, the women walked back to their dressing room. Inside the male band members lounged around waiting for the concert to begin. Beth pushed Sabrina in ahead of her, "Alright, everyone with a dick must leave right now!" the younger woman shouted.

Toby glanced up and took in the sight before him; Sabrina shifting from one foot to another and Beth who had a protecting look about her. "Come on, you heard the loud bitch," Toby grumbled as he rose to his feet.

"Let's go bug Green Day," Emmett said as the male members left the room.

Beth shoved the test into Sabrina's hand and pushed her towards the bathroom area. "Go, and don't come out till it's done," the younger woman said. Beth watched her boss go into the other room and settled into a chair to wait.

Less than ten minutes later Sabrina came back out, "I'm fucked."

"Well yes you were; that's why you took the test... " Beth retorted smartly.

Sabrina sighed, "No, I'm fucked. It came out positive."

"Well than that's a cause for celebra... "

"No," Sab interrupted, "I'm being erased from his life... how do you think THIS is going to go over with HER?"

"Fuck her," Beth exclaimed with the venom dropping from her voice over the woman in question. "Who the fuck does she think she is?"

"What am I going to do?"

"I don't know, how about telling him?"

"NO, NO, NO, NO!" Sabrina said, "But I have to do some damage control. Can you go get the guys and round them up for a band meeting, please?"

"A band meeting?" Beth said looking confused.

"Yea, I don't do band meeting unless it's REALLY important, the guys will understand," Sabrina explained.

"Ohhhkkkay," Beth said still not really understanding, but she did as Sabrina asked her do. She walked to the Green Day dressing room and entered it to find both bands milling around. "Hey, the Boss is calling for a band meeting."

Toby jerked his head up in surprise, "Band meeting? Is that what she said, in those words?"

"Yup, band meeting; she said you guys would know what it meant."

"What's wrong?" Mike said as he came up next to Beth catching the weird vibe from the other band at the mention of a band meeting.

"Nothing, Sab wants a band meeting that's all," she explained.

"Then why are these guys acting as though it's a death sentence or something?"

She shrugged her shoulders and turned to walk away and follow the band back into their own room. Upon entering the room everyone took a seat to wait while Sabrina finished up on her cell phone. When she was done Toby broke the silence, "So what's wrong?"

She turned to look at her oldest friend, "I'm pregnant and I need to leave right after I get off stage to fly home. I have a doctor's appointment in the morning to verify the test I just took."

Toby and the others were stunned at her news, "So I take it congratulations are not in order?"

"I dunno yet," she replied as she turned to look at the people in the room. "This doesn't leave this room. You can't tell a soul; not ANYONE; no spouses, no friends, and certainly no one in Green Day and that includes Tre." Sabrina turned to look at Beth, "This means no Mike either."

Beth sputtered, "What do you mean you not telling anyone?"

"That's right."

"Yea; umm news flash Sabrina; when you start to get bigger you won't be able to hide it."

"I know," Sabrina sighed "but until then, no one is to know."

Beth grumbles a bit more but respected Sabrina's wishes for the moment and everyone dispersed in order to get ready for the performance that night which was less than 2 hours away.

After they were finished and were walking off stage, Toby met Sabrina and handed her a towel, "I got a car waiting to take you to the airport Sab," he said as fell into step along side of her.

"Thanks, Tobe."

As they were passing Billie in the hallway Toby inquired, "You got a ride home from the airport?"

"Yea, my Equinox is in the hanger waiting for me... "

"Wait, airport? What is going on?" Billie interrupted while suddenly remembering the earlier commotion.

"Nothing, just heading home, I'll be meeting the tour tomorrow; I hopefully will be there by sound check, if not. I definitely will be there before show time," she explained as they continued down the hall not stopping for any further discussion.

The next day came and Sabrina returned before sound check and gave no reason for leaving and no one asked even though they all wanted to ask. Before going on stage, she conferred with her band and confirmed that she indeed was pregnant and reiterated that no one was allowed to say a word about it to any one, not even Tre.