The Road to Acceptance

"Say what now?" Mike was confused. Adrienne---in love with Billie? How?

"I never thought it would get like this. I didn't think I still felt for him---"

"But---but what about me? And what about us?"

Due to the fact that she was crying so hard, Adrienne didn't answer. Instead she took to sobbing into her hands and shaking her head.

"It's all such a mess," she finally choked. "Billie was meant to be a thing of the past---I can't tell you how this has happened Mike because I don't know."

"I'm not asking for how it happened Adie. I'm asking what about me?"

Shaking, she reached out one hand and touched his cheek. She thought her heart would split when she felt him flinch at her touch.

"I'm in love with you too Mike. Please don't be mad at me."

Mike sat and churned everything that Adrienne was saying to him over and over in his head. He didn't know if he was angry, or so upset that if he was to cry then he wouldn't stop. Nothing made sense. Before now, Adrienne had never expressed a romantic interest in Billie.

"How long have you felt this way?"

"I knew I felt something from the time we went bowling. But last night, at the party, he told me he wanted to be with me and it hurt when I had to tell him I was in love with someone else."

"It hurt?! What do you mean, it hurt?!"

"Mike please---don't shout at me."

"I thought we were happy Adie---I thought you wanted to be with me."

Adrienne scrambled to her knees and threw her arms round Mike's neck. She squeezed him hard when his body remained limp and didn't react to her embrace.

"I do want to be with you Mike---"

"So then what's all this about?"

"Because I think I want to be with Billie too."

Mike placed his hands on Adrienne's shoulders and gently pushed her away.

"Well you can't have the both of us---"

Silently, Mike climbed off the bed to stand over Adrienne.

"I hate to have to say this Adie, but it's him or me---"

The finality in his tone made Adrienne's body shake with desperation; she didn't want to lose him.

"Mike---you can't do that to me!"

"Well you can't lead me on if it's Billie you're secretly wanting to be with. And you can't pretend to Billie that you're interested when you're carrying on with me."

"But---but---I don't know what to do?!"

"Do the right thing---"

With that, Mike left the bedroom. Adrienne remained knelt on the bed. She felt numb. No matter how hard she tried to comprehend what Mike had just said, none of it made sense.

She knew being with Billie would overall make the most sense. After all, their relationship wouldn't be illegal. But she knew her being with Billie would break Mike in two and she didn't want to be responsible for that.

The more she thought about her predicament, the more her head hurt with confusion. Feeling overwhelmed by it all, she rested her head back onto her pillow and was surprised at how quickly tiredness crept through her body. 'I'll just lie here for a little while,' she thought to herself as she closed her eyes and prayed that when she woke up, all her troubles would have gone away.

Meanwhile downstairs, Mike was fully awake; anger seethed through his veins. But who it was directed to, he couldn't decide. Adrienne had pissed him off no end. He had worked it out that if what Adrienne had told him was true, then she had been harbouring feelings for Billie Joe for well over a month, seeing as that was when they went on their last date. His head hurt to think that all the times in the last month that he and Adrienne had slept together, that it was possible that she was wishing she was with Billie.

Thinking of Billie made him want to smash things up. Although he had known all along that Billie felt for Adrienne, the thought that Adrienne now reciprocated those feelings made him want to hate him. Best friends or not, right at that moment, Mike wished he'd never met him.

The shrill ring of the house telephone abruptly interrupted Mike's seething.

"Hello," he answered sharply.

"Mike buddy," Tre began. "Something has majorly pissed Beej off. I've just gone round to his to find him smashing his amp up with his guitar! He doesn't know bout you and Adrienne does he?"

"No---"

"Well what the hell is wrong with him?"

"To be honest Tre, I don't really care. I've got bigger things on my plate to worry about right now."

"Mike---is everything ok? What's happened?"

"Its not something I want to share at the minute Tre. Talk to you later." Mike sighed and then hung up. He hurriedly pulled the phone cord out of the wall so to be sure that he wouldn't be interrupted again.

He went to head upstairs, wanting to talk to Adrienne again, but then changed his mind and headed back towards the phone. He plugged the cord back in and carefully punched in his desired number.

"S'up Mike?" Billie answered straight away. His tone was flat, like he couldn't be bothered.

"Get your ass over here---we need to talk."

"I don't want to talk just now."

"Believe me Billie---it's in your best interest that you come over here."

"Why?"

"Everything you're worried about is going to make sense once you're here."

Not saying another word or waiting for a reply from Billie, Mike put the phone down. 'He'll come,' he thought. 'I'm going to sort this one way or another.'