Changes

"Where's Jay?" Tony asked sleepily, scratching her head.

Mike shrugged.

"Don't lie to me, Mike. You two are bunking up. You'd know if he went somewhere."
"Tony, I was trashed. It's not like I was really concerned about Jay."
"Jesus. I was just making conversation."

She picked up her cereal bowl and walked past Mike. She leaned over, pretending to read the newspaper.

But what she really did was whisper into Mike's ear.

"Lover's spat?"

Very calmly, Mike took the cereal bowl and dumped it over her head.

~~~

Jay leaned against the wall of the bar. He flung his bottle of Jack Daniels in the general direction of the bus.

Or should he be going to the hotel?

"FUCK!" He screamed suddenly and sank down onto the sidewalk and closed his eyes.

Why hadn't he just stayed in the fucking trailer?

"Because of Mike, you dipshit, that's why you decided to go out and get trashed."

"Whose Mike, sweet cheeks?" A sultry voice asked.

Jay looked up and saw a very young, very scantily clad woman wearing blue eyeshadow and loads of gold jewlery, shivering down at him.

"He's this guy...and I love him...but I can't be with him...he's too good for me..." Jay slurred, looking up at her with his eyes half-closed.

"Poor dear." Jay looked at her again.
"Well. I'll be damned. You're a hooker?"

She laughed, but Jay didn't find it at all funny.

"Yeah. Gotta make a living. Come on, I'll take you home." She hoisted him up. For a moment, Jay thought she might be able to hold him. But then he crashed back to the ground.

"Aww, FUCK." He shouted, feeling blood drip down his cheek. The hooker freaked.
"Shit, I'm so sorry." This time, she dragged him up and leaned him against the wall.

"It's probably safer this way. Just...hang on to the wall. Where are you staying?"
"I...I don't know." Jay whispered.

The hooker cursed.

"Then let's find a bloody pay phone and you can call someone."

~~~

The phone ringing took everyone by surprise. Tre, who was deep in concentration, playing his video game, fell right off his chair. Tony swore and nearly dropped a bottle of vodka. Robert slopped his milkshake all over himself.

Billie snapped up the phone and grinned into it.

"Hello, you've reached Tony's Escort Service-"
"Give me that." Tony snatched the phone away from him. "Hello?"
"Um. Hi. Do you know a guy named Jay?"

The speaker sounded young and uncertain. Tony frowned.

"Yes. He's out though."
"I know. He's right here. And he doesn't remember how to get home. But the number, this number, he had it in his pocket...so I called it..."
"Where are you?"
"Right outside the mall."

She paused, and Tony heard a faint wolf whistle.

"Could you please hurry?"

Before Tony could answer, Mike grabbed the phone out of her hands.

"I'll be right down."

He hung up the phone and began looking around for his shoes.

"Mike, you'll be recognized." Tre saiad lazily.
"No, I won't. Tony, gimme that hat."

Mike yanked the baseball cap down low and stormed out of the apartment.

"You notice how weird Mike's been acting?" Billie said, to no one in particular. Robert scratched his head.
"I think he's trying to keep Jay sober."
"And failing, by the looks of it." Tom laughed.

Tony started laughing.

"What the hell is so funny?" Billie demanded. Tony dropped into his lap.
"You guys are just so naive. I love it."

She kissed Billie on the cheek then stood up.

"I'm going to take a shower."

She winked at Billie, then walked out of the room. Billie's cheeks flushed.

"I'm just gonna go work on some lyrics."

After he left the room, Tre started laughing.

"That man is quite possibly the worst liar I know." Tre gestured at Billie's empty chair with his Gameboy.
"Not as bad as Blondie." Tom stated.
"I don't lie." The drummer said, offended. Robert started laughing.
"That's because you can't pull it off."

Tre laughed and pointed in the direction of the bathroom.

"Next loud noise you hear, I'll bet ten dollars that it'll be Billie."
"I like those odds." Robert put a wrinkled ten dollar bill on the table.

The apartment fell quiet for barely a second before the laughter started.

~~~

"Thank you so much, miss." Mike laid Jay down in the backseat of the stolen car. The girl watched him with huge eyes.

"It's fine. I was gonna offer him a hand job or something, but the poor guy just looked so trashed. And then he started talking about how he can't be with his boyfriend but he still loves him."

Mike felt his face flush, but he said nothing. The hooker shrugged.

"Look, I gotta go. I still need to make at least three hundred dollars today."
"You know what? Here." Mike rooted through his pocket, pulled out three bills and pressed them into her hand.
"What the hell is this for?" She asked, shocked.
"For taking care of him."

Then he dropped into the driver's seat and left her standing on the sidewalk with her mouth hanging open.

~~~

"Why do you do that?"

Tony watched as Billie carefully removed his makeup.

"Because."
"It'll come off in the shower, you know."
"But then I'll look all streaky."
"Billie, you're practically a woman, you know that?"

She pulled off her t-shirt and flung it across the room. Bilie smiled as she kissed him, feeling her hands on his skin.

And then steam clouded the mirror, and Billie forgot about everything else, except Tony.