Lillie Joe's POV
Monday, May 27, 2013
I woke up to someone shaking my shoulder lightly and whispering my name. I slowly opened my eyes and saw my mom smiling down at me. She said something but I couldn't understand her because I was still half asleep. I tore my gaze from her and looked at my curtains. It was shining with light, meaning it was daytime.
I closed my eyes and dozed off again, completely forgetting my mom was in the room. I heard her chuckle and felt her shake me again.
"Leave me alone," I grumbled, "why does this family love waking me up so early in the morning?"
"Because it's time for school," Mom said and kissed my head, "you have 30 minutes to get ready, and don't you even think about going back to sleep."
I sighed loudly and dramatically then called out to her, "Mom, wait! Am i still going to the same school, or am i going to Joey and Jacob's school?"
"You're going to the school you went to when you found your father."
I smiled then got up and got ready. She left the room so I could get privacy. I put on one of the shirts Mom bought me and a pair of ripped jeans. I brushed my hair into a high ponytail and went downstairs to make myself a bowl of cereal since I had time to spare.
I moved to sit on the couch so I could watch TV while I ate. Dad, Joey, and Jacob came rushing down the stairs. They all said good morning to me as Dad rushed to get Jacob's jacket and bookbag on him.
"Late?" I asked, chuckling.
"Yes, meaning we don't have time to be judged by you," Dad joked while pushing Joey and Jacob out the door and closing it behind him.
Five minutes later, Dad returned home, out of breath. He sluggishly collapsed on the couch next to me. I set down my bowl and leaned my head on his shoulder.
"You alright, Dad?" I asked, hugging him.
"Yeah, I'm fine Lillie," he smiled and kissed my head, "we should probably get you to school, too."
"But, I have 10 minutes to spare!" I broke from our hug
"And we live 15 minutes away from the school, so get your things and meet me in the car."
He stood up, once again and left the house. I grabbed my bookbag and my lunchbox, turned off the television, yelled up the stairs to say bye to Mom, then left the house and entered Dad's car.
"You got all your things?" He asked, "You're not leaving anything?"
I double-checked my bag, "Yep, all my things are here."
He nodded, pulled off, and fifteen minutes later, arrived at my school, "Adrienne is gonna pick you guys up after school. I'll be at the studio with Mike and Tré. If you want, you can ask her to bring you to us."
"Alright, I will." I opened the door to leave, "Bye, Dad!"
"Have a good day, Lillie Joe!"
I smiled and closed the door. Before Dad left the parking lot, he honked his horn twice at me, making me giggle. I entered the school and went to my locker to grab my school supplies.
When I turned around, I immediately spotted Matthew and Luna who seemed to be searching for something. Matthew looked in my direction, and when he saw me, his eyes widened. He grabbed Luna's arm and they both sprinted toward me with their arms stretched out like they wanted to hug me.
"Lillie Joe!" They called out in unison.
I smiled as they finally reached me, almost knocking me over as they crushed me in a hug. We caught up with each other and I answered all the questions Matthew had about my mom. Finally, the bell rang, and Matthew and I separated from Luna to go to our class.
Entering the classroom, I immediately made eye contact with Ash-Lynn, who blushed and looked away from me. Matthew and I looked at each other with knowing looks, then sat in our seats. Halfway through, the lesson someone threw a note on my desk. It was from Ash-Lynn.
Hey, Lillie Joe
Hi, Ash-Lynn
How have you been?
Fine, I guess.
I'm sorry for upsetting you last week. And I'm sorry for calling your friend a faggot when I'm one myself.
It's alright I guess.
Ash-Lynn, I don't want you to hate me. I like you... a lot. Can I make it up to you after school? We could go to the little coffee shop that's a block from here.
I'm sorry, but I'm hanging out with my Dad after school.
You could've just said no, Lillie. Unless you actually found your Dad.
I found him at the party last week.
I'm happy for you.
Thanks, uh, we could go after school tomorrow. If that's fine with you
Yes! Yes, that's fine with me. Thanks for giving me a second chance.
No problem 😊
Did you just draw an emoji
...no?
I blushed as I saw Ash-Lynn roll her eyes playfully. I turned to Matthew to see him shaking his head at me, disapprovingly. I sighed and went back to complete my work. The period ended and so did the next one, and then it became my lunchtime. As I approached the cafeteria, I saw Ash-Lynn leaning against the wall, seemingly waiting for someone. I smiled and walked to her.
"Who are you waiting for?" I asked.
"You," she answered, grabbed my arm, and walked into the cafeteria with me at her side.
I smiled as we sat down at our table with our friends, "Hey, guys." I greeted.
Chara, Charity, and the two other girls looked at us and smiled.
"You two made up!" Chara exclaimed as the girls cheered. Ash-Lynn and I blushed and avoided eye contact.
One of the girls, whose name I know is Amanda, commented on our blushing, "Oh, I know that face. It's the face of two people who are interested in each other- or going on a date later!"
The other girl, Julia, exclaimed, "Which is it? Which is it?"
Ash-Lynn laughed and said quietly, "It's both, guys..."
The girls squealed as Ash-Lynn and I giggled. They started asking us questions and we answered as many as we could and as many as we wanted to. Then finally, after lunch and the rest of our classes ended, school was over.
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I waited in the parking lot to see if I could find Mom's car. That's when I heard a voice call out my name. I turned to see Jacob with his head sticking out the backseat. When he realized that I saw him, he started waving maniacally at me. I giggled and sprinted to the car.
I sat in the backseat since Joey was in the front seat next to Mom. I said hi to everyone and they said hi back to me.
"Mom?" I called, "Dad said I can meet him at the studio today. Can I?"
"Sure, Lillie Joe," Mom agreed, "Jacob is going with you."
"What about you, Joey?" I asked him.
"I'm hanging out with friends," he answered.
I nodded and relaxed in my seat. I put in my earphones and started watching YouTube. I felt a head on my shoulder and saw Jacob staring at my phone, watching what I was watching. It was Markiplier playing GTFO with Bob, Jack, and Wade. I took out of of my earphones and gave it to Jacob so he could listen as he watched.
2 YouTube videos later, we finally arrived at the studio. Jacob and I undid our seat belts and climbed out of the car. We waved goodbye at Mom and Joey then entered the building. Jacob pressed a button and we heard a buzzing sound then a voice. The fmvpice kind of sounded familiar, but at the same time, I couldn't remotely recognize it.
"Who is it?" the voice asked in a sing-song tone.
"Uncle Tré!" Jacob exclaimed, "It's Jacob and Lillie Joe, let us in!"
He pretends to think for a moment, "I have no idea who you guys are, goodbye."
We heard a click and tried to open the door but it was still locked.
Jacob pressed the button to talk, again, "Uncle Tré, let us in!"
We heard a buzz and a click, then tried to open the door, again. It was unlocked. Jacob grabbed my hand and walked down the hallways to a room where Dad, Mike, Tré, and one of the Jasons were about to practice. As soon as I heard the guitar, I knew they were playing Pollyanna.
Rainy days and razor blades
I think it's time to pull up the shades
It's wonderful
To be alive
Hurricanes and headlines
Standing in another line
It's wonderful
To be alive
And everything is gonna be alright
Don't let 'em get you down
Don't let 'em push you around
We're gonna take back the night
Everything's gonna be alright
Share your bread with friends you don't know
Hold the truth, and never let go
Don't give up, and go with what you know's for real
"Que sera" and "ç'est la vie"
Every day's a jubilee
And it's wonderful to be alive
Open roads and traffic lights
You're the last soul in sight
And it's wonderful
To be alive
And everything is gonna be alright
Don't let 'em get you down
Don't let 'em push you around
We're gonna take back the night
Everything's gonna be alright
Share your bread with friends you don't know
Hold the truth, and never let go
Don't give up and go with what you know's for real
Better days are looking up the road
Don't give up, and go with what you know
Hold the truth and leave, the rest is not for real
Screaming out for love (hey)
Rise above the shame
Shouting out for love (hey)
Rise above, and don't give up yourself
Don't let me down
Don't let me down
Don't let me down
Jacob and I sang along with Dad, danced, and laughed at Tre making funny faces, while the guys played. When the song ended, Jacob and I clapped and cheered for them as they bowed. Dad put his guitar down and walked to me.
He hugged me and said, "Hey, Lillie Joe, how was your day?"
"It was good," I answered then looked at Mike and Tré, "You guys sounded amazing!"
They thanked me and finished putting away their instruments. Dad ruffled Jacob's hair then grabbed my arm and led me to Mike and Tré.
"Lillie Joe," he said, "you already know this, but these are my best friends Mike Dirnt and Tré Cool! And over Jason White is talking to Jason Freese. But we call him Whitey."
I giggled and waved, "Hi!"
"Welcome back, Lillie, we missed you," Mike said as Tré smiled.
"You don't have any homework you need to do, do you?" Dad asked me.
"Uh, yeah, just math," I answered.
"Alright, go start it, then. Oh, and are you hungry?"
"A little, yeah."
"Cool, because Tré just ordered 5 boxes of pizza!"
"Five boxes? For five people? Wouldn't you guys just need three or two boxes?"
"Tré likes to spend money. Now, you and Jacob need to start your homework. Call Mike if you need help. Or call Jason White. They're the only smart ones out of all of us."
I laughed and went to sit on the couch next to Jacob who was already doing his homework. Math isn't my strong suit. I spent at least 5 minutes on the first question! Finally, I had enough of struggling and called for Mike.
He walked into the room Jacob and I were in and said, "Did one of you call my name just now?"
I slightly raised my hand, "I did."
He smiled and walked over to me, "What's wrong, Lillie Joe?"
"Can you help me with my homework?"
"Why didn't you ask your Dad?"
"He said you and Jason White are the smartest out of all of them."
I heard Jacob scoff, "Jason is smart, not Mike!"
Mike rolled his eyes and threw a pillow at Jacob's head, "Sure, I'll help you. What subject is this?"
"Math," I answered, happy that he agreed to help.
"Alright. Can you show me what you already know?"
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Mike finished helping Jacob and me with our homework and the pizza Tré ordered finally arrived. Dad, Mike, Tré, Jacob, the two Jasons, and I ate and joked around. Mike and Tré told me some stories about myself from when I was little, Whitey was listening to them and laughing at their stupidity, and Freese was messing around with Jacob and Dad. Oftentimes, I saw Dad look at me, probably making sure I was happy.
"Lillie Joe, do you know how to play instruments?" Tré asked which grabbed the attention of everyone in the room.
"No, I'm sorry," I blushed, "but I've always wanted to learn piano, drums, and guitar!"
Dad, Whitey, Mike, and Tré shot up and started talking to me all at the same time. I giggled at their excitement and quickly shut them up.
"How about this," I proposed, "You guys can teach me these instruments each week. Starting next week, Tré can teach me drums, the week after that, Whitey and Mike can teach me electric and bass guitar, and the week after that Freese can teach me piano, and Dad can teach me acoustic guitar and anything else whenever he wants. Sound good?"
Everyone agreed and smiled. Jacob, Dad, and I drove home a couple of hours later, exhausted. We all went to our separate rooms, took showers, and went to bed.
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WORDS: 2311