When I Come Around Part 6
Author: timrod
Rating: NC17 overall
Pairing: Billie Joe/other Disclaimer: I don't own Green Day.
Part 1 - http://comingclean.livejournal.com/2953785.html#cutid1
Part 2 - http://comingclean.livejournal.com/2954009.html
Part 3 - http://comingclean.livejournal.com/2954629.html
Part 4 - http://comingclean.livejournal.com/2955105.html
Part 5 - http://comingclean.livejournal.com/2956943.html
Studio days were always manic, but this one was more so than ever, right from the start. Breakfast was a rushed affair compared to the laziness of Sunday, partly due to the fact that the refrigerator was almost empty, save for Saturday night’s left-overs. If he had been alone, Billie would have happily eaten that, but today, Bernadette was in the kitchen before the two men came downstairs, and she had consigned the Chinese food to the bin, redeeming herself by having already made the coffee.
“I swear if it wasn’t for me, you’d have poisoned yourself by now.”
Billie grinned at his housekeeper and house guest in turn. “You need to meet my second Mom. Jay, this is the wonderful Bernadette.” Billie reached for a consolation-prize box of cereal whilst the two shook hands, clattering a single bowl and three mugs onto the counter, splashing milk and coffee everywhere as he tried to do too much at once. “She keeps me from losing my mind.”
“I think that’s a lost cause, Billie. Any special instructions for me today?”
In the time it took for Jay to eat his cereal, Bernadette had her workload for the day outlined, Billie had written a list of groceries for her, downed two cups of steaming coffee, explained his visitor’s extremely short life story, and was standing at the door, jacket on, flipping his keys from one hand to the other. When Jay returned from his room with his own jacket, the kitchen was already restored to sparkling clean, and the utility room floor was covered with neat piles of sheets and towels, sorted by colour, the washer already churning through the first load.
**
Monday traffic and another rain shower meant that the journey to work was stop-start, and Jay saw Billie’s impatient side for the second time in one morning. He leaned forward, arms folded over the steering wheel, waiting for the cars to move, grinning at his passenger when he realised how closely he was being watched.
“Sorry, I’m a shit driver, I know. I just wanna get into work, just like the five thousand commuters in front of us. We’re so close with this album, I can smell it. I want to finish it today. It shoulda been done and dusted on Friday.”
“I guess that was me getting in the way.”
“Not really. Well, yeah. Just a little.”
“I’ll try not to get in your way today.”
“You won’t. My bit won’t take long. I’ve only got one guitar part to patch on a song that’s gonna be a bonus track on the first single, and then Jake does his stuff, working with the music, adjusting levels, tweaking the sound. This is when the real magic happens. Today is going to be good.”
“Sounds cool. I think I’m gonna love it.”
**
Just as soon as he had taken off his coat, Billie was in the recording space, warming up his fingers for the take. Jay seemed to have forgotten last night’s sadness, now caught up in the excitement around him, much to Billie’s relief. He was shown into the seat next to Jake, given a cup of coffee and more or less left to himself for the rest of the session, watching the expert at work crafting a jumble of sounds until they became one, perfect song. Jake gave short explanations about what he was doing, but most of it went over Jay’s head - all he knew was that he was loving every moment. Even when they broke for lunch, the talk was still about the music - the running order, the album artwork, the timing of the press releases - the two old friends blatantly as excited as kids about the whole thing. Jay zoned out, listening to some of the finished material through a pair of headphones, idly drumming his fingers on the edge of the mixing desk. He jumped when Billie tapped him on the shoulder, grinned and pushed the headphones down to rest around his neck.
“Sorry. I was miles away.”
“Not too bored?”
“No, nothing like. This is great.”
“Glad you like it. Look, we’ve got a guy coming in from the record label for a meeting. We’ll be out back, ask anyone if you want something. We shouldn’t be more than an hour, ninety minutes tops ...”
“Take as long as you like. Jake just gave me a playlist of your old stuff. I could be here all day.”
“Okay. As soon as the rep goes, we’re out of here.” Billie patted him on the shoulder and wandered off to find Jake, and Jay drifted back into the music.
**
It was quite dark when the two of them climbed back into Billie’s car, leaving just Jake’s pick-up in the parking lot. The rep had stayed a little later than planned, but Billie was pretty much satisfied that nothing more could be done by him, and that the album was now the label’s problem. He grinned at his passenger, huddled into his jacket, and looking equally pleased with himself.
“So how was your first day at work?”
“Cool. I ate sandwiches, drank coffee and listened to music.”
“Sounds like my kind of day. Sorry, I sorta neglected you a bit. How are you?”
“Okay. Yeah, pretty much fine, I think. I got a lot of your songs running through my head still. I like what you do.”
“Thanks. I’ve always had the philosophy that I make music that I like and if anyone else gets it, that’s good. If not, they can choose not to buy it. So far, the strategy seems to be working.”
“It looks like you enjoy what you do.”
“Yeah. It’s not a bad life.”
“So what do you do now this album’s done?”
“Start work on the next one.” Billie laughed at Jake’s favourite joke that he had just stolen.
“Really? Don’t you get a vacation?”
“Maybe I’ll take a weekend. I got a tour coming up in a few months, just after the album goes into the record stores, so there will be some rehearsals of the new material, but I never stop writing. I got a tape machine in the bedroom, in case something comes into my head in the night. I never learned to write music, so I just sit on the bed and play.”
“Cool. So what are we gonna do tonight? More movies?”
“Not tonight. We’re going out to dinner - a free dinner. Possibly the best dinner of your life.”
“That’s not much of a challenge. I can only remember since Saturday.”
**
Billie pulled the car onto the driveway of a small, one storey house with a neat garden, and welcoming lights along the path to the porch, Jay following a few steps behind, because Billie was being enigmatic, and that made him a little anxious. The singer tapped on the door and called out.
“Hello, we’re here.”
“Come through. I’m just finishing up in here.”
This room was so different from Billie’s stylish and simple kitchen. It was crammed with mixers and toasters and every kind of cooking gadget that Jay didn’t know existed until now. A small blonde woman was pouring gravy into a jug, clattering it all to the counter to accept a tender kiss on the cheek from her son before wiping her hands on her apron and extending her arms to hug her other visitor, a smile lighting up her vaguely familiar features.
“Hello. You must be Jay. Billie Joe told me all about you.”
“Jay, this is Mom. Looks like she’s cooked enough to feed an army, so you’d better be hungry.”
“Not quite an army, no, but Billie said he didn’t know what you liked, apart from Chinese take-out and pancakes, so I did a little of everything. Sweetheart, take some of these dishes through to the dining room, and you two sit down. I’ll bring the rest in and we can talk while we’re eating.”
Jay felt as at home here as he did at Billie’s within five minutes. Ollie - as he was instructed to call her - related stories from her son’s childhood, making one dinner guest squirm in his seat and the other one laugh. The meal was a great success, neither Armstrong commenting on the sometimes odd combinations of food that Jay put onto his plate - salad and gravy? - but he seemed to enjoy it anyway. When nobody had room for so much as another cup of coffee, Billie cleared the dishes, leaving his new friend and his mother to retreat to the living room together. He loaded the dishwasher and tidied away as much as he could, returning to find them both engrossed in the contents of a huge box of faded photographs, and once more laughing at his expense. At first, he was on edge, worried how this trip into his past would affect Jay - but when it appeared that he wasn’t going to lapse into another dark mood like last night’s, Billie relaxed too, conceding defeat by digging out some of the most embarrassing photos from the bottom of the box.
**
“Well?” Billie slipped the car into drive, waving from the open window until his childhood home was out of sight.
“She’s wonderful. That food was ....” Jay hiccupped gently. “ ..... just wonderful, too.”
The singer chuckled, cranking up the heater and closing the window. “That good, huh? She makes everyone welcome - she always has a houseful. Six kids .... over twenty grandchildren - she retired last year but I think she works harder now than she ever did. We’ll go there for Christmas - you’ll see that tonight’s dinner was just a snack.”
“Christmas?”
“A holiday, late December - about four weeks away. The whole family ends up at Mom’s for the day. We exchange gifts with one another - it’s sorta like everyone having a birthday on the same day. You’ll love it.”
Jay hunkered down in his seat, gazing at another new-to-him part of the city. “So you think I’ll still be like this at Christmas? No memory, no family of my own?”
“Shit.” Billie pulled the car over to the kerbside and turned off the engine. “Look, sorry - I should have thought before I said that.”
“Billie, it’s not that I’m unhappy, or ungrateful, I just don’t wanna give up hope of finding someone ...anyone.”
“We’re trying, Jay, I swear. I spoke to the cops again this afternoon - actually they called me in the middle of that fucking meeting - I forgot to turn my cell off again. They’re still looking, but they’ve drawn a blank so far and they’ve not got any new leads. I’m so sorry ... I meant to tell you earlier.”
“It’s okay. It’s not your fault.” Jay grabbed at Billie’s hand, squeezing it. “I love being at your place, and I think Christmas with your family will be great, if they’ll have me. Something for me to look forward to, but ..... it’s not going to be like this forever, is it?”
“It’s for as long as you need, Jay. Actually ....” Billie squeezed back. “I forgot to tell you about the doctor, too. Ten thirty in the morning - is that okay by you?”
“If it’s good for you ..”
“It is. I already told Jake I wouldn’t be around tomorrow. We’ll have to leave home about ten, so we haven’t got to be up early.”
“Okay. Thank you.” Jay smiled, patting Billie’s knee. “Funny. I’m the one with no memory and you are the one that keeps forgetting stuff.”
Billie giggled, tapping a single finger to his forehead. “I got a lot going on up here - music, business, family .... “
“Perhaps you should get that personal assistant some time.”
“Yeah. Maybe.” Billie started the car again and pulled out into the sparse night-time traffic. “Or maybe I should get a less complicated life.”
**
As visits to the doctor’s office went, this one was pretty stress - free. Jay had little idea about what to expect, and Billie worked hard to keep his aversion to all things medical well hidden. He took a notebook from his pocket as Jay was called into the consulting room, and started writing - lyrics, a collection of places to take his new friend and a list of family members with ideas for Christmas gifts scribbled next to them - losing himself in words to shut out clinical surroundings that couldn’t be disguised with potted plants and watercolour landscapes. He flipped from page to page as a different flash of inspiration hit him, not really noticing the comings and goings around him, or the passage of time. Billie had asked for a thorough physical, and that was exactly what was happening - blood tests, x-rays, the full works - because of Jay’s complete lack of knowledge about his medical history. The receptionist went for her lunch break and returned before there was any sign of the doctor being done with his new patient, but early in the afternoon, Billie was called into the office.
Jay was in one of the chairs by the desk, his shirt partly-buttoned, lacing his Cons. Billie settled into the seat next to him, placed a reassuring hand on his knee and whispered “okay?”.
“Yeah, I’m cool. I learned a lot about me.”
“And?”
The doctor shuffled the papers on his desk and slipped them into a folder. “He’s fine. Actually, he’s very healthy, although I did give him a vitamin shot to boost his immune system for the flu season. The rest of the blood tests will take a couple of days, but every thing I’ve got results for has come back clear. There’s only one slight abnormality that I can find.”
“Abnormality? What kind of abnormality?”
Jay grinned and pointed to his groin. “One testicle. Apparently I should have two.”
Billie tried to stop the snigger, but failed. “Yeah, that is usually the case.”
“I want to get a scan carried out to see what’s going on down there, but there’s no rush. He’s about the age that we’d be carrying out routine checks for problems in that department, anyway.”
“So how old do you think he is? Is there somehow you can tell?”
“I’d guess around the same age as you. I’d say forty sounds about right.”
“Life begins ...” Billie chuckled to himself. “But there’s nothing else to worry about?”
“Nothing at all, as far as I can tell.” The doctor flicked through a few pages and smiled at his patient. “You haven’t even got dandruff, Jay.”
“Cool. What’s dandruff?”
Billie patted him on his flake-free shoulder. “I’ll explain in the car. So we can go ...?”
“Yes, yes, I’ve finished with him. I’ll get the rest of the results mailed out as soon as I get them. Actually, there is one more small thing - I need a last name for your records. I can’t register you as Jay in the computer system.”
“So I get to choose my own name? Cool!”
Billie laughed out loud as an idea came to him. “That would be perfect!” Jay looked as if he had missed a part of the conversation, or Billie had completely lost his mind. “Jay Cool. It sounds so rock and roll!”
“Is that even a name?”
The doctor picked up a pen, ready to write. “I have patients with far more unusual names than that - mainly musicians.”
“I’ll bet. Do you remember me telling you about my bassist, Jay?”
“Yeah - Mike. The skinny one with the bad haircut.”
“Yeah, that’s him. Well, his second name is Dirnt - he used to pretend to play bass at school, just plucking the air and saying ‘dirnt, dirnt, dirnt ...’ As names go, Cool is pretty restrained.”
Jay pondered for a second, then a huge grin spread over his face. “I like it. Yeah. Call me Cool!”
The doctor filled in the last box on the front of the folder and reached to shake Jay’s hand. “It’s been nice to meet you, Mr Cool, and I’ll get those results sent over in a couple of days.”
**
“So it was okay, then?”
“Yeah, it was pretty much fine. Just a couple of odd moments.”
“Yeah? Like what?”
“I didn’t like him taking blood.”
“No, me either. The secret is not to look at what he’s doing.”
“I’ll remember that.”
“So what else was odd?”
“I already felt a bit undressed in that gown thing, and then he told me to take down my underwear .....”
“Yeah, I shoulda warned you that would happen. Sorry.”
“It felt fucking weird enough having someone handle my junk, and then ...” Jay shuddered a little in his seat.
“The finger?”
“Yeah. The finger. Felt like his whole fucking arm.”
Billie spluttered into his sleeve, trying to keep the car going straight. “Yeah, that’s how it felt to me, too!”
“So he does that to you as well?”
“Yeah, for a couple of years now. He’s just checking for problems. It’s no big deal really, just a little embarrassing.”
“He carried on talking - asking me all sorts of questions with his finger up my ass. THAT was embarrassing.”
“But it’s all over now. Did you ask him about your meds?”
“Yeah. He said I seemed fine without them, just to take the painkillers if my headache comes back.”
“That’s great. So what shall we do for the rest of the afternoon? Your choice.”
“I’m pretty hungry. I missed two meals today.”
“Shit, yeah, I forgot you had to fast before the blood tests. Okay, how about I take you to meet Mike? He’s got a cafe near here - Emeryville. He should be there today - I gotta talk to him about rehearsals anyway, and the food is fucking great.”
**
The cafe was packed, even though it was long past a conventional lunch hour, but Billie was a regular visitor, and the waitress who spotted him hurried them through the main part of the restaurant to a small room at the back, without attracting much attention. Jay read the menu a dozen times at least before deciding, Billie just asking for his usual. The drinks came up quite quickly - a huge chocolate malt for Jay, a glass of something that looked very interesting placed in front of Billie.
“What’s that?”
“Pressure Drop. Guinness and espresso coffee.”
“Well, I know what coffee tastes like ..”
“Here, try some. Now you’re off your meds, there’s no reason for you not to have alcohol.”
Jay took a small drink, letting the bitter liquid linger in his mouth, and the creamy head leave a pale tide-line under his nose. His eyes widened and he licked his lips.
“Wow. I like it.”
“Do you want one?”
“I already got this ..”
“Swap. I’m driving anyway - I wasn’t going to drink it all. Please ..”
“If you’re sure. Cool, thanks.” Jay took a much larger swig and muttered ‘wow‘ again, just as a lean figure eased into the bench seat next to him. He guessed it was Mike. He guessed right.
“Biilie. Good to see you. How’s it going?”
“It’s done. I can get some tapes sent over to you, and the list of dates, if you’re still up for the tour.”
“I’m in, no question.”
“Great. We can start rehearsals after the holidays.”
“Okay by me, but how about John? Is he on board this time?”
“No idea. He hasn’t returned my calls. Sorry, I didn’t introduce my friend here. Mike, meet Jay ... Jay Cool.”
“Pleased to meet you. Great name.”
“Thanks. I sort of chose it myself today.” Jay grinned through a faint cloud of froth, and Mike looked politely puzzled.
“He got caught in a shooting near the studio on Friday - banged his head, lost his memory. He’s staying with me until the cops can find out his real name or where he comes from.”
Mike nodded. This was typical Billie, saving the world one piece at a time. “Sounds like you were lucky.”
“Yeah, he’s been very good to me. He took me to his doctor this morning and he put his finger up my ass. The doctor. Not Billie, but Billie said he does it to him, too.”
Chocolate milkshake sprayed from Billie’s nose and Mike, like a good cafe owner, pulled napkins from the dispenser and wiped the table, handing another one to the singer. “Yeah, they kinda like doing that.”
“I didn’t like it. Felt weird.” He added, in far too loud a voice. “Do you have a bathroom here?”
“Uh, yeah - at the front, past the bar on the left.”
Jay disappeared and Mike let the badly suppressed giggle erupt. “He’s hilarious.”
“He’s not used to alcohol and he hasn’t eaten since last night. Sorry, man. I’ll try and keep him quiet while we eat, avoid pissing off your customers.” Billie gulped down a little of the Pressure Drop and topped it up with water, just to be helpful.
“It’s okay. The people who come here are pretty much used to random stuff happening. What have you ordered? Have you been waiting long?”
“He went for a blue cheese burger, because he said it sounded pretty. He’s gonna be so disappointed when it turns up brown. I got the usual Mile High Club - and we only ordered a coupla minutes ago.”
“I’ll check with the kitchen. We’re breaking in a new cook.”
“Busy, huh?”
“Very. Some of the more experienced staff went to the new place, and I hired another manager for here, so yeah, I’ve been fucking busy. The tour will be like a rest for me!”
“You can wish.”
A succession of loud ‘excuse me’s announced Jay’s return, and Mike stood to let him sit down again, wrapping a tattooed arm around Billie to give him a brief hug. “I’ll go chase your food. Call me when you send the tapes. Nice to meet you, Jay, and enjoy your meal.”
Mike was hardly out of earshot when Jay made his inevitable full-volume comment. “He’s nice. Skinny, like you said. Good looking, too and his hair doesn’t look like shit any more.”
Billie’s eyes twinkled. “Yeah, he’s one of those types that always looks elegant - the bastard. You’ll be seeing a lot of him if you stick around me. I’ll tell you some more about him later.” When we are alone and the alcohol has worn off kind of later ... “Looks like our meals are here. Great. I’m starved.”
They ate in almost silence, the need for food outweighing the need for conversation, much to Billie’s relief, and as soon as they finished, he gestured to the waitress for the check. As often happened, Mike had settled it already - owner’s prerogative - and Billie tapped on the office door and called out ‘thank you’ as they walked back into yet more rain.
“So what are we doing now?”
“Home, I think. Unless you have a better idea.”
“I’m full and I’m kinda tired.”
“Okay, so no partying tonight.” Billie turned onto the freeway entrance, headed for home anyway. “This is a little out there, but how about we chill with a couple of movies?”
“Sounds perfect.” Jay gave another one of those irresistible boomerang smiles. “Hey, Billie?”
“Mmmm?”
“You never did tell me about dandruff.”
Rating: NC17 overall
Pairing: Billie Joe/other Disclaimer: I don't own Green Day.
Part 1 - http://comingclean.livejournal.com/2953785.html#cutid1
Part 2 - http://comingclean.livejournal.com/2954009.html
Part 3 - http://comingclean.livejournal.com/2954629.html
Part 4 - http://comingclean.livejournal.com/2955105.html
Part 5 - http://comingclean.livejournal.com/2956943.html
Studio days were always manic, but this one was more so than ever, right from the start. Breakfast was a rushed affair compared to the laziness of Sunday, partly due to the fact that the refrigerator was almost empty, save for Saturday night’s left-overs. If he had been alone, Billie would have happily eaten that, but today, Bernadette was in the kitchen before the two men came downstairs, and she had consigned the Chinese food to the bin, redeeming herself by having already made the coffee.
“I swear if it wasn’t for me, you’d have poisoned yourself by now.”
Billie grinned at his housekeeper and house guest in turn. “You need to meet my second Mom. Jay, this is the wonderful Bernadette.” Billie reached for a consolation-prize box of cereal whilst the two shook hands, clattering a single bowl and three mugs onto the counter, splashing milk and coffee everywhere as he tried to do too much at once. “She keeps me from losing my mind.”
“I think that’s a lost cause, Billie. Any special instructions for me today?”
In the time it took for Jay to eat his cereal, Bernadette had her workload for the day outlined, Billie had written a list of groceries for her, downed two cups of steaming coffee, explained his visitor’s extremely short life story, and was standing at the door, jacket on, flipping his keys from one hand to the other. When Jay returned from his room with his own jacket, the kitchen was already restored to sparkling clean, and the utility room floor was covered with neat piles of sheets and towels, sorted by colour, the washer already churning through the first load.
**
Monday traffic and another rain shower meant that the journey to work was stop-start, and Jay saw Billie’s impatient side for the second time in one morning. He leaned forward, arms folded over the steering wheel, waiting for the cars to move, grinning at his passenger when he realised how closely he was being watched.
“Sorry, I’m a shit driver, I know. I just wanna get into work, just like the five thousand commuters in front of us. We’re so close with this album, I can smell it. I want to finish it today. It shoulda been done and dusted on Friday.”
“I guess that was me getting in the way.”
“Not really. Well, yeah. Just a little.”
“I’ll try not to get in your way today.”
“You won’t. My bit won’t take long. I’ve only got one guitar part to patch on a song that’s gonna be a bonus track on the first single, and then Jake does his stuff, working with the music, adjusting levels, tweaking the sound. This is when the real magic happens. Today is going to be good.”
“Sounds cool. I think I’m gonna love it.”
**
Just as soon as he had taken off his coat, Billie was in the recording space, warming up his fingers for the take. Jay seemed to have forgotten last night’s sadness, now caught up in the excitement around him, much to Billie’s relief. He was shown into the seat next to Jake, given a cup of coffee and more or less left to himself for the rest of the session, watching the expert at work crafting a jumble of sounds until they became one, perfect song. Jake gave short explanations about what he was doing, but most of it went over Jay’s head - all he knew was that he was loving every moment. Even when they broke for lunch, the talk was still about the music - the running order, the album artwork, the timing of the press releases - the two old friends blatantly as excited as kids about the whole thing. Jay zoned out, listening to some of the finished material through a pair of headphones, idly drumming his fingers on the edge of the mixing desk. He jumped when Billie tapped him on the shoulder, grinned and pushed the headphones down to rest around his neck.
“Sorry. I was miles away.”
“Not too bored?”
“No, nothing like. This is great.”
“Glad you like it. Look, we’ve got a guy coming in from the record label for a meeting. We’ll be out back, ask anyone if you want something. We shouldn’t be more than an hour, ninety minutes tops ...”
“Take as long as you like. Jake just gave me a playlist of your old stuff. I could be here all day.”
“Okay. As soon as the rep goes, we’re out of here.” Billie patted him on the shoulder and wandered off to find Jake, and Jay drifted back into the music.
**
It was quite dark when the two of them climbed back into Billie’s car, leaving just Jake’s pick-up in the parking lot. The rep had stayed a little later than planned, but Billie was pretty much satisfied that nothing more could be done by him, and that the album was now the label’s problem. He grinned at his passenger, huddled into his jacket, and looking equally pleased with himself.
“So how was your first day at work?”
“Cool. I ate sandwiches, drank coffee and listened to music.”
“Sounds like my kind of day. Sorry, I sorta neglected you a bit. How are you?”
“Okay. Yeah, pretty much fine, I think. I got a lot of your songs running through my head still. I like what you do.”
“Thanks. I’ve always had the philosophy that I make music that I like and if anyone else gets it, that’s good. If not, they can choose not to buy it. So far, the strategy seems to be working.”
“It looks like you enjoy what you do.”
“Yeah. It’s not a bad life.”
“So what do you do now this album’s done?”
“Start work on the next one.” Billie laughed at Jake’s favourite joke that he had just stolen.
“Really? Don’t you get a vacation?”
“Maybe I’ll take a weekend. I got a tour coming up in a few months, just after the album goes into the record stores, so there will be some rehearsals of the new material, but I never stop writing. I got a tape machine in the bedroom, in case something comes into my head in the night. I never learned to write music, so I just sit on the bed and play.”
“Cool. So what are we gonna do tonight? More movies?”
“Not tonight. We’re going out to dinner - a free dinner. Possibly the best dinner of your life.”
“That’s not much of a challenge. I can only remember since Saturday.”
**
Billie pulled the car onto the driveway of a small, one storey house with a neat garden, and welcoming lights along the path to the porch, Jay following a few steps behind, because Billie was being enigmatic, and that made him a little anxious. The singer tapped on the door and called out.
“Hello, we’re here.”
“Come through. I’m just finishing up in here.”
This room was so different from Billie’s stylish and simple kitchen. It was crammed with mixers and toasters and every kind of cooking gadget that Jay didn’t know existed until now. A small blonde woman was pouring gravy into a jug, clattering it all to the counter to accept a tender kiss on the cheek from her son before wiping her hands on her apron and extending her arms to hug her other visitor, a smile lighting up her vaguely familiar features.
“Hello. You must be Jay. Billie Joe told me all about you.”
“Jay, this is Mom. Looks like she’s cooked enough to feed an army, so you’d better be hungry.”
“Not quite an army, no, but Billie said he didn’t know what you liked, apart from Chinese take-out and pancakes, so I did a little of everything. Sweetheart, take some of these dishes through to the dining room, and you two sit down. I’ll bring the rest in and we can talk while we’re eating.”
Jay felt as at home here as he did at Billie’s within five minutes. Ollie - as he was instructed to call her - related stories from her son’s childhood, making one dinner guest squirm in his seat and the other one laugh. The meal was a great success, neither Armstrong commenting on the sometimes odd combinations of food that Jay put onto his plate - salad and gravy? - but he seemed to enjoy it anyway. When nobody had room for so much as another cup of coffee, Billie cleared the dishes, leaving his new friend and his mother to retreat to the living room together. He loaded the dishwasher and tidied away as much as he could, returning to find them both engrossed in the contents of a huge box of faded photographs, and once more laughing at his expense. At first, he was on edge, worried how this trip into his past would affect Jay - but when it appeared that he wasn’t going to lapse into another dark mood like last night’s, Billie relaxed too, conceding defeat by digging out some of the most embarrassing photos from the bottom of the box.
**
“Well?” Billie slipped the car into drive, waving from the open window until his childhood home was out of sight.
“She’s wonderful. That food was ....” Jay hiccupped gently. “ ..... just wonderful, too.”
The singer chuckled, cranking up the heater and closing the window. “That good, huh? She makes everyone welcome - she always has a houseful. Six kids .... over twenty grandchildren - she retired last year but I think she works harder now than she ever did. We’ll go there for Christmas - you’ll see that tonight’s dinner was just a snack.”
“Christmas?”
“A holiday, late December - about four weeks away. The whole family ends up at Mom’s for the day. We exchange gifts with one another - it’s sorta like everyone having a birthday on the same day. You’ll love it.”
Jay hunkered down in his seat, gazing at another new-to-him part of the city. “So you think I’ll still be like this at Christmas? No memory, no family of my own?”
“Shit.” Billie pulled the car over to the kerbside and turned off the engine. “Look, sorry - I should have thought before I said that.”
“Billie, it’s not that I’m unhappy, or ungrateful, I just don’t wanna give up hope of finding someone ...anyone.”
“We’re trying, Jay, I swear. I spoke to the cops again this afternoon - actually they called me in the middle of that fucking meeting - I forgot to turn my cell off again. They’re still looking, but they’ve drawn a blank so far and they’ve not got any new leads. I’m so sorry ... I meant to tell you earlier.”
“It’s okay. It’s not your fault.” Jay grabbed at Billie’s hand, squeezing it. “I love being at your place, and I think Christmas with your family will be great, if they’ll have me. Something for me to look forward to, but ..... it’s not going to be like this forever, is it?”
“It’s for as long as you need, Jay. Actually ....” Billie squeezed back. “I forgot to tell you about the doctor, too. Ten thirty in the morning - is that okay by you?”
“If it’s good for you ..”
“It is. I already told Jake I wouldn’t be around tomorrow. We’ll have to leave home about ten, so we haven’t got to be up early.”
“Okay. Thank you.” Jay smiled, patting Billie’s knee. “Funny. I’m the one with no memory and you are the one that keeps forgetting stuff.”
Billie giggled, tapping a single finger to his forehead. “I got a lot going on up here - music, business, family .... “
“Perhaps you should get that personal assistant some time.”
“Yeah. Maybe.” Billie started the car again and pulled out into the sparse night-time traffic. “Or maybe I should get a less complicated life.”
**
As visits to the doctor’s office went, this one was pretty stress - free. Jay had little idea about what to expect, and Billie worked hard to keep his aversion to all things medical well hidden. He took a notebook from his pocket as Jay was called into the consulting room, and started writing - lyrics, a collection of places to take his new friend and a list of family members with ideas for Christmas gifts scribbled next to them - losing himself in words to shut out clinical surroundings that couldn’t be disguised with potted plants and watercolour landscapes. He flipped from page to page as a different flash of inspiration hit him, not really noticing the comings and goings around him, or the passage of time. Billie had asked for a thorough physical, and that was exactly what was happening - blood tests, x-rays, the full works - because of Jay’s complete lack of knowledge about his medical history. The receptionist went for her lunch break and returned before there was any sign of the doctor being done with his new patient, but early in the afternoon, Billie was called into the office.
Jay was in one of the chairs by the desk, his shirt partly-buttoned, lacing his Cons. Billie settled into the seat next to him, placed a reassuring hand on his knee and whispered “okay?”.
“Yeah, I’m cool. I learned a lot about me.”
“And?”
The doctor shuffled the papers on his desk and slipped them into a folder. “He’s fine. Actually, he’s very healthy, although I did give him a vitamin shot to boost his immune system for the flu season. The rest of the blood tests will take a couple of days, but every thing I’ve got results for has come back clear. There’s only one slight abnormality that I can find.”
“Abnormality? What kind of abnormality?”
Jay grinned and pointed to his groin. “One testicle. Apparently I should have two.”
Billie tried to stop the snigger, but failed. “Yeah, that is usually the case.”
“I want to get a scan carried out to see what’s going on down there, but there’s no rush. He’s about the age that we’d be carrying out routine checks for problems in that department, anyway.”
“So how old do you think he is? Is there somehow you can tell?”
“I’d guess around the same age as you. I’d say forty sounds about right.”
“Life begins ...” Billie chuckled to himself. “But there’s nothing else to worry about?”
“Nothing at all, as far as I can tell.” The doctor flicked through a few pages and smiled at his patient. “You haven’t even got dandruff, Jay.”
“Cool. What’s dandruff?”
Billie patted him on his flake-free shoulder. “I’ll explain in the car. So we can go ...?”
“Yes, yes, I’ve finished with him. I’ll get the rest of the results mailed out as soon as I get them. Actually, there is one more small thing - I need a last name for your records. I can’t register you as Jay in the computer system.”
“So I get to choose my own name? Cool!”
Billie laughed out loud as an idea came to him. “That would be perfect!” Jay looked as if he had missed a part of the conversation, or Billie had completely lost his mind. “Jay Cool. It sounds so rock and roll!”
“Is that even a name?”
The doctor picked up a pen, ready to write. “I have patients with far more unusual names than that - mainly musicians.”
“I’ll bet. Do you remember me telling you about my bassist, Jay?”
“Yeah - Mike. The skinny one with the bad haircut.”
“Yeah, that’s him. Well, his second name is Dirnt - he used to pretend to play bass at school, just plucking the air and saying ‘dirnt, dirnt, dirnt ...’ As names go, Cool is pretty restrained.”
Jay pondered for a second, then a huge grin spread over his face. “I like it. Yeah. Call me Cool!”
The doctor filled in the last box on the front of the folder and reached to shake Jay’s hand. “It’s been nice to meet you, Mr Cool, and I’ll get those results sent over in a couple of days.”
**
“So it was okay, then?”
“Yeah, it was pretty much fine. Just a couple of odd moments.”
“Yeah? Like what?”
“I didn’t like him taking blood.”
“No, me either. The secret is not to look at what he’s doing.”
“I’ll remember that.”
“So what else was odd?”
“I already felt a bit undressed in that gown thing, and then he told me to take down my underwear .....”
“Yeah, I shoulda warned you that would happen. Sorry.”
“It felt fucking weird enough having someone handle my junk, and then ...” Jay shuddered a little in his seat.
“The finger?”
“Yeah. The finger. Felt like his whole fucking arm.”
Billie spluttered into his sleeve, trying to keep the car going straight. “Yeah, that’s how it felt to me, too!”
“So he does that to you as well?”
“Yeah, for a couple of years now. He’s just checking for problems. It’s no big deal really, just a little embarrassing.”
“He carried on talking - asking me all sorts of questions with his finger up my ass. THAT was embarrassing.”
“But it’s all over now. Did you ask him about your meds?”
“Yeah. He said I seemed fine without them, just to take the painkillers if my headache comes back.”
“That’s great. So what shall we do for the rest of the afternoon? Your choice.”
“I’m pretty hungry. I missed two meals today.”
“Shit, yeah, I forgot you had to fast before the blood tests. Okay, how about I take you to meet Mike? He’s got a cafe near here - Emeryville. He should be there today - I gotta talk to him about rehearsals anyway, and the food is fucking great.”
**
The cafe was packed, even though it was long past a conventional lunch hour, but Billie was a regular visitor, and the waitress who spotted him hurried them through the main part of the restaurant to a small room at the back, without attracting much attention. Jay read the menu a dozen times at least before deciding, Billie just asking for his usual. The drinks came up quite quickly - a huge chocolate malt for Jay, a glass of something that looked very interesting placed in front of Billie.
“What’s that?”
“Pressure Drop. Guinness and espresso coffee.”
“Well, I know what coffee tastes like ..”
“Here, try some. Now you’re off your meds, there’s no reason for you not to have alcohol.”
Jay took a small drink, letting the bitter liquid linger in his mouth, and the creamy head leave a pale tide-line under his nose. His eyes widened and he licked his lips.
“Wow. I like it.”
“Do you want one?”
“I already got this ..”
“Swap. I’m driving anyway - I wasn’t going to drink it all. Please ..”
“If you’re sure. Cool, thanks.” Jay took a much larger swig and muttered ‘wow‘ again, just as a lean figure eased into the bench seat next to him. He guessed it was Mike. He guessed right.
“Biilie. Good to see you. How’s it going?”
“It’s done. I can get some tapes sent over to you, and the list of dates, if you’re still up for the tour.”
“I’m in, no question.”
“Great. We can start rehearsals after the holidays.”
“Okay by me, but how about John? Is he on board this time?”
“No idea. He hasn’t returned my calls. Sorry, I didn’t introduce my friend here. Mike, meet Jay ... Jay Cool.”
“Pleased to meet you. Great name.”
“Thanks. I sort of chose it myself today.” Jay grinned through a faint cloud of froth, and Mike looked politely puzzled.
“He got caught in a shooting near the studio on Friday - banged his head, lost his memory. He’s staying with me until the cops can find out his real name or where he comes from.”
Mike nodded. This was typical Billie, saving the world one piece at a time. “Sounds like you were lucky.”
“Yeah, he’s been very good to me. He took me to his doctor this morning and he put his finger up my ass. The doctor. Not Billie, but Billie said he does it to him, too.”
Chocolate milkshake sprayed from Billie’s nose and Mike, like a good cafe owner, pulled napkins from the dispenser and wiped the table, handing another one to the singer. “Yeah, they kinda like doing that.”
“I didn’t like it. Felt weird.” He added, in far too loud a voice. “Do you have a bathroom here?”
“Uh, yeah - at the front, past the bar on the left.”
Jay disappeared and Mike let the badly suppressed giggle erupt. “He’s hilarious.”
“He’s not used to alcohol and he hasn’t eaten since last night. Sorry, man. I’ll try and keep him quiet while we eat, avoid pissing off your customers.” Billie gulped down a little of the Pressure Drop and topped it up with water, just to be helpful.
“It’s okay. The people who come here are pretty much used to random stuff happening. What have you ordered? Have you been waiting long?”
“He went for a blue cheese burger, because he said it sounded pretty. He’s gonna be so disappointed when it turns up brown. I got the usual Mile High Club - and we only ordered a coupla minutes ago.”
“I’ll check with the kitchen. We’re breaking in a new cook.”
“Busy, huh?”
“Very. Some of the more experienced staff went to the new place, and I hired another manager for here, so yeah, I’ve been fucking busy. The tour will be like a rest for me!”
“You can wish.”
A succession of loud ‘excuse me’s announced Jay’s return, and Mike stood to let him sit down again, wrapping a tattooed arm around Billie to give him a brief hug. “I’ll go chase your food. Call me when you send the tapes. Nice to meet you, Jay, and enjoy your meal.”
Mike was hardly out of earshot when Jay made his inevitable full-volume comment. “He’s nice. Skinny, like you said. Good looking, too and his hair doesn’t look like shit any more.”
Billie’s eyes twinkled. “Yeah, he’s one of those types that always looks elegant - the bastard. You’ll be seeing a lot of him if you stick around me. I’ll tell you some more about him later.” When we are alone and the alcohol has worn off kind of later ... “Looks like our meals are here. Great. I’m starved.”
They ate in almost silence, the need for food outweighing the need for conversation, much to Billie’s relief, and as soon as they finished, he gestured to the waitress for the check. As often happened, Mike had settled it already - owner’s prerogative - and Billie tapped on the office door and called out ‘thank you’ as they walked back into yet more rain.
“So what are we doing now?”
“Home, I think. Unless you have a better idea.”
“I’m full and I’m kinda tired.”
“Okay, so no partying tonight.” Billie turned onto the freeway entrance, headed for home anyway. “This is a little out there, but how about we chill with a couple of movies?”
“Sounds perfect.” Jay gave another one of those irresistible boomerang smiles. “Hey, Billie?”
“Mmmm?”
“You never did tell me about dandruff.”