I brought the last of my bags out the house and dropped them on the front garden as my mom came out of the building. She shut the door behind herself and walked straight past me opening the boot of her car before looking back at me.

He's gonna pull up any minute.

"Get them in the boot then." She bluntly demanded me looking down at my bags.

I heard a faint noise of music before billies car came into sight with the windows rolled down and music on the radio up as high as he could get it.

I smiled to myself as I picked up two bags. My mom looked over at his car as he swiftly parked it behind hers and jumped out. "Need a hand with those bags m'lady?" He confidently asked pretending to bow.

Once my mom saw who it was her eyes flew back to me. She was both shocked and angry. "What's going on here!" She shouted over to me through gritted teeth as Billie walked over and picked up some bags on the floor ignoring her and putting them in his car.

Don't show her your nervous, that's what she wants.

"Well..." I grinned a little. "There's been a change of plans," I told her before dropping one of the bags in my hand, which Billie picked up afterwards and put it into the car, and pulled out the black key from my back Jean pocket as I held it up.

"Where did you get that from!" She barked. Billie took the last bag from my hand and began to take it to the car.

"I may have found it,"

She began to march over to me as from the corner of my eye I saw Billie drop my bag quickly and run over. He stood himself right in front of me. Shielding me. Protecting me. As a dog would when it thinks it's owner is exposed to danger.

"Get away from my daughter now," she hissed to him. Annoyed.

I bit my lip nervously as Billie didn't flinch. He didn't turn his face away or move back. He stayed where his feet were planted to the ground and stood as tall as he could before crossing his arms and replying to her.

"No can do Miss Ives,"

"I said MOVE!"

again, he didn't flinch. She wasn't scaring him. And that annoyed her more.

I saw another familiar looking vehicle pull up behind billies parked car. And the three of us turned our attention to it.

I saw Mike's goofy smile in the window before he jumped out his truck. Getting out of the other side was Tre, and out the back came Addison and Violet. They all smiled to me before walking over, mike picked up the bag Billie dropped and put it in billies boot before lifting down the door.

They weren't close to Billie, my mom and I. They were at the bottom of the garden. But they were still there.

"All your bags ready?" Tre asked from up the garden. I had never been more appreciative of them than I was right now.

I walked over to them and moved from being behind Billie as I nodded. "Yep, all in the car ready to go,"

Billie however, didn't move. He was still stood facing my mom. And my mom didn't move either.

But one of them had to back down. And I wasn't completely sure whom.

I've never seen my mom walk away. I don't think she had it in her.

But Billie didn't look scared or intimidated by her one bit. And I was scared for him. He already hated her enough.

"You're making a big mistake Billie Joe," she mumbled to him in a low and angry tone. She pulled one of those sarcastic smiles that always made me feel sick. It was such a sinister look. She must be evil.

"I don't think I am," he smiled back. With a confident and unbothered grin, she hated.

"You've always got to come back to school," her smile grew across her face. "Back to my school."

"Actually," he spoke. He glanced into her eyes. "I don't,"

Her evil smile dropped off her face and was replaced by a confused expression. "What do you mean you don't?" She insisted to him.

"I quit,"

"You can't quit school,"

"I'm dropping out,"

"You are!?" I exclaimed surprised. I didn't know that was part of the plan.

"What do you mean you're dropping out?" My mom growled to him.

"I'm dropping out of school, I'm ditching it, I'm pulling myself out," he rephrased still with his lips turned upwards. Proud of himself.

"Yeah erm- I'm sorta doing that too," Mike spoke up from beside me.

I raised my eyebrows and parted my lips surprised as I looked at him as if to ask 'you are?', before Tre on the other side of me spoke up.

"Me three, schools for suckers!"

My mom looked at the both of them stuttering for words. I had to go back too, or could I drop out?

I already owned a house. It was built and owned under my name I didn't need to pay many bills. All electricity was powered through solar panels and solar batteries, and I already worked a shitty job stacking shelves that gave me fairly good money. Enough for good amount of shit to fill the cupboards.

I could drop out if I wanted to.

I should drop out, I want to.

Do it then you dope!

"M-me four," I stammered. Not sounding nearly as confident as Billie or mike and not even close to Tre's level of courage.

Then her eyes landed on me. "What?" She dryly asked me.

"I'm dropping out too,"

"You can't drop out- you-"

"-she doesn't live with you anymore," Mike cut her off. "She's eighteen, legally allowed to leave home without your permission. Meaning she's her own woman now, she can do what she wants."

"You're seriously going to move out?" She asked. "You think you can even survive the outside world without me?"

"I've done it most of my life without you," I bluntly pointed out. "I can do it now,"

"I warned you not to speak to Billie Joe, now look. He's brainwashed you."

I laughed at her slightly. "Brainwashed me?" I asked sniggering. "Are you serious? He's done nothing but help me. When you weren't there."

"He's not helped you, look at him," she laughed back as she looked back forward to Billie. Looking him up and down like he was an animal. Downgrading him just by her two eyes. "He can't even help himself,"

"Hey, that's my friend you're talking about!" Tre shouted as he stepped forward out of line from me and Mike but Mike pushed him back.

"I Can too help myself!" Billie said defensively raising his voice.

"No you can't, you're trouble. That's all you are and all you ever will be."

"That's messed up," Violet whispered behind me.

Billie drew his bottom lip under his crooked teeth trying to stop it from trembling. She'd got to him. She'd hurt him. That's crossing the fucking line.

"Billie Joe Armstrong is not trouble!" I roared to her, the anger in me from every word I had never said to me fuzzing out like a shaken up soda can. She snapped her head over to look at me. "You wouldn't even be able to begin to see how wrong you are! Billie Joe is the one person who stitched me up every time you tore me apart! He's the one person who sat and listened to me even when I spoke nothing! He's the one who has stuck by my the second he learnt my name! I would put my whole life into his two hands without hesitation! I wouldn't think twice about that choice! Because he's not trouble. He's made mistakes, he's had slip ups. But that does not make him a bad person and I can't even physically stand here and let you speak of him like he is!"

She looked completely shocked by my out burst. I had never allowed myself to really break and go off at her. Until now that is.

"You really think you could live with him?" She asked me with a distasteful facial expression across her face.

"I wouldn't want it any other fucking way."

He looked at me. With his wonky smile, like he was still sad but happy. And with that smile, I knew every reason to stand up for him.

Because he would have done the same for me.

Because he did do the same for me.

And I loved him.

"Let's go." I finally smiled at him. Addison and Violet headed back into Mike's truck as mike and Tre followed. I stood next to billies car waiting for him to walk over.

He looked back at my mom. Giving her a final look. I could tell he wanted to say some smart ass comment. Or insult her. I knew he was dying to tell her what he thought of her.

But instead of that, he looked her up. Looked her down. Brought his gaze back to her face before he smiled. And walked back over to me.

I smiled at myself sort of proud of him before he jumped into the driver's seat of the car. I walked around the car and went to look up at my mom. Just to smile at her too, or maybe flip her off. But she had gone back inside obviously in a fit of rage. So instead I laughed to myself before opening the car door and climbing in.

Billie began to start the car as mikes truck followed behind.

"I'm so proud of you, you did it!" Billie beamed happily to me still driving.

"I know! I couldn't have done any of that without you- or them for that matter," I slightly giggled turning around and looking through the window of the back of the car at Mikes truck.

"I bet you weren't expecting Mike and Tre to pull up huh?" He asked me as I turned my body back around facing the front of the car again.

"Did you tell them to?"

"I told them the plan, it was them that wanted to be there,"

"Really?"

"They insisted on being there, so I let them,"

"I also really appreciate when you stood in front of me," I gently smiled. "That was really bold of you to do, really amazing too,"

"I was shitting myself though,"

"You looked calm and collected to me,"

"I had to," he began to explain with his eyes stuck to the road ahead as he drove. "I had to look calm for you, so you wouldn't worry or panic, I'd stand in front of a blazing fire for you and still smile if it made your heart worry a little less,"