it wasn't a surprise to molly when she learned the guys had change the band name again. this time, it was the silver beetles. to molly, that was a bit weird.
"it's just... you guys can have your name! i don't make the rules!" she seethed while in the bathroom of paul's house. it was only george, john and the two of them, so they all fit.
the acoustics were much better in there, anyway.
"what do you mean, you don't like it?" george cried. he rested his guitar on the wall of the bathroom.
john and paul followed. "i don't not like it," molly explained. "i just don't care for it, that's all."
"y'know, molly, we don't need you to tell us in your posh little london accent what you like and dislike about our band name," john barked sarcastically.
although it was a joke, it felt like it wasn't to her. she lightly chuckled as she escaped the room to get a snack. paul's kitchen was quite small compared to molly's.
tommy, the drummer, was out of the band, leaving the rest of the guys on the lookout for a new one. stuart wasn't there that day because he was sick, but the boys stilled practiced without him.
they picked their instruments back up and began practicing some more. they played one of their songs, love me do. the song was about paul's ex, iris caldwell, a quite nice girl at school. but, they weren't together anymore. paul was still with dot.
he had turned eighteen the month prior. today was molly's birthday, though. she was eighteen, too! poor george, the youngest of the bunch was still only seventeen. john, on the other hand was almost twenty.
"how does it feel to finally be eighteen, molls?" paul said, taking a cracker from the plate full of crackers and cheese. "adulthood's coming quick, aye?"
molly nodded somberly. she didn't want to grow up. but it sure did feel good to be eighteen. it was her last year of school the semester before, so she'd finally graduated from school. now, she just had to figure out what she'd do with her life.
so far, her plan was to apply to colleges around the london area. she was finally ready to leave rainy, miserable liverpool.
she sure would miss her boys, though. her mother told her that she'd have to get over her little girl crushes and move on from them, because she felt as if they were holding her back. molly told her that nothing would hold her back from going to london and moving on with her life.
she still hadn't told the guys she was moving down as soon as she could. she was planning on doing it today.
once the boys finished practicing love me do, molly took the chance and seized it.
"so, erm... i've applied to some colleges," she said shyly. it was hard for her to say it.
"oh yeah? which ones?" george chomped on a cracker as he asked, spewing bits of crackers onto the floor below.
"um... i-uh... some in london," molly said quietly. they still heard what she said, even over the chewing.
paul's eyebrows knitted together in confusion. "you said london? you're going to london?"
"if i get accepted," she confessed. "i probably won't even..."
everyone stopped what they were doing and looked to her confusedly. "why haven't you told us sooner?" john asked, nearly making molly's heart explode into a million pieces.
"yeah, why didn't you tell us?" george asked in a pitiful tone.
"because... because... i know i'll miss you, and it's hard," tears began to well in her changing eyes. sometimes they were brown, but mostly they were blue. occasionally, a mix of hazel or green. heterochromia iridum had it's confusions.
"oh, molls," paul put his guitar down once again and brought her into a warm hug. "it's alright..."
john and george sat awkwardly as they tried to console her, too. "we'll sure miss you, molly," john frowned.
"you'll still write to us, won't you?" george exclaimed.
"of course i will!" molly cried.
they all formed a tight hug around one another, and even george and paul started crying. john didn't want to admit he teared up, but he did. the hug lasted for a good minute, and it made molly feel much, much better afterwards.
"i'm glad i got that out," molly said after they all broke apart. "i'll miss you all so much."
"we'll miss you too," paul said. "maybe someday we'll all come visit you,"
she nodded, rubbing the tears away. somehow, george had gotten ahold of the large tray of crackers, sadly munching on them. "what?" he said when they all turned to him. "crying makes me hungry."
"oh, george, i'll miss you and your weird eating habits so much!"
she almost burst into tears again right then and there, but she only took a cracker off the plate and ate along with him.
"since we're talking about going places," john interjected. "our manager, allan, has offered us a tour in hamburg next month." he said nonchalantly.
"hamburg?" molly said, muffled through the crackers and cheese. "isn't that one of the most sexed-up cities in the world?"
"sure is," paul happily said. "my father almost don't let me go, but allan convinced him."
"yeah, mimi was practically reluctant to let me go," john laughed, carefully putting his guitar back in his case. "but i told her we'd be getting fifteen pounds a week, and that's all it took!"
"fifteen pounds?" molly jumped. "that's a lot!"
george piped up, saying, "i guess we're just that good," he laughed.
"when do you leave?" she asked. it was pointed towards john, but paul answered as he put his guitar in his case.
"early august!" he said excitedly. "we'll be playing at the indra club, top ten, beer-shop, the list goes on and on!"
"that's phenomenal!" molly congratulated them. "i'm happy for you all, i truly am."
john was the last to get his guitar in it's case with a bit of hassle, but he got it in. "you'll have to come visit us sometime!" he told her.
she nearly dropped the tray from laughing so hard. "me? in hamburg?" she stuttered as she hollered with laughter. "ridiculous!" she began coughing from how hard she was laughing.
"what?" john asked. "are you too good for hamburg?"
"i have self-respect, john," she replied. "i couldn't possibly go to hamburg! at a time like this, too? i'm almost going to college!"
"you haven't even gotten accepted," he retorted with a snarky comment. "classes don't even start until september."
paul and george looked to her like a child asking for a toy at the store. "yeah, you should come sometime!" paul said.
"really, you've gotta visit us," george only added to the dramatics.
she widened her eyes and shook her head, grabbing her jacket from the hanger on the back of the door. they all piled out of the bathroom into the living room by paul's piano. "you all need to understand that i have a life other than hanging out with you," molly explained. "i can't just pick up and go whenever i please!"
"why not?" john questioned.
"because that's not the way the world works, john."