Brad brought me back to the apartment that Rob and I were in the process of moving into. The door was open and It looked like Chester was helping move boxes into the apartment.
I smiled as I then helped him put together an old bookshelf. After we finished the construction and many swear words later from chester, I started putting books from a box with my name marked on it. I couldnt help but wonder about my taste in authors and books. I have no idea where some of them came from. There were many volumes of classic books such as Robin Hood and The Three Musketeers, my heavier books such as the compleat works of Poe and Robert Frost. Then there were my other books on many subjects from a Dummies guide to drumming to the LP book to many music books like Scar Tissue by Anthony Kedis of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Many books on Kurt Cobain and then the more contriversial books such as Night by Elie Weisel or Freedom From Fear or even my personal favorite book series, the resident evil series. Brad came in with another couple of boxes with my named marked on them. He set them down with a groan as he then picked up the top book from another box.
"Einstein's Space & Van Gogh's Sky? Why on earth are you like reading something like this?"
Embarrassed, I snatched the book from his hands.
"That's for my AP Physics class."
I said with a sheepish look on my face.
"Well it like seems that something like this should be in like a psychology class."
Brad said as he flipped through the well thumbed pages. I couldnt help but blush.
"You sure are like alot smarter then people like to think you are."
Brad said as he set the book on my bookshelf.
"Thats what my dad keeps telling me."
I said softly. I pulled open a box of Manga where I started putting the books in order by genre then by number in the series.
"Your a smart kid, dont let anyone tell you otherwise."
Brad said as he helped chester put together a bedside table.
"Big bad did you just say an entire sentance with out the word like in it?"
Chester asked incredicuously. Brad rolled his eyes at the older man.
"Shove it chaz. go and like alert the media."
Brad said as he flipped chester off.
"Dude, I so dont swing that way."
Chester snorted. After another few hours in some feeble attempt at an escape for what I was going to face once I got back to Rav's house.
"Brad, would you mind dropping me off at the ledges?"
I was refering to the dogtown ledges that were on the outskirts of Santa Monica, near the beach, which was almost a twenty minute drive from here.
"Not at all. Do you want me to pick you up?"
I shook my head.
"Shawn or Jimmy'll give me a ride home."
I said. Brad smiled as he handed me my board and then he handed me a long thin box.
"Think of this as your early birthday present."
I picked up the box and sat on the floor and slowly unwrapped it. My heart almost stopped. It was an original Z-boys fish style skateboard. These things were rare and expensive as ****. I was still in silence as Brad drove me out to the beach. Sure enough as I guessed, Jimmy was there as well as my other two best friends, Shawn and Will. Shawn was the oldest of our group and was a senior, will was a red headed mexican and jimmy was just jimmy, nothing out of the ordinary. Shawn gave me a slap on the back as Brad drove off.
"I was starting to think you wernt gonna come out on such a beautiful day."
"sorry I had to move some stuff in my dads new apartment."
I said as I borrowed Will's skate key and cleaned out my berings in my wheels.
"So are your parents like officialy split?"
"shut up. we didnt come here to talk, we came here to skate."
Shawn almost barked at Will. jimmy was messing around with his camera. I shook my head as I skated up almost parallel to the long curving bench and ollied up. I hoped that my board came down right. My back foot missed it as I came down painfully on my knee. There was an audiable crack as I brought my arms in and leaned more towards my right shoulder, my hand that I didnt use as much. I winced as my arm was skinned by the cement. Everything seemed to stop. The other three just stood there with their mouths open before Jimmy rushed right towards me. He then shouted at Will to get the first aid kit that was in his backpack. Tears welled up in my eyes from the pain in my knee. I almost passed out from what I saw. The whole skin covering on my knee was peeled back and you could see the muscle and the shattered bits of bone poking through.
"****."
I muttered as I handed my cell phone to Shawn who was closest to me.
"Call chester. Hit the green button then hit 4. its his number on speed dial. tell him not to tell my mom"
I said, my voice shaky from the adrenaline leaving my system and shock. Will was busy calling for an ambulance. I didnt want Rav to know I had been hurt cuz then she would launch into this whole thirty hour long lecture. I knew chester would know what to do. Sure enough within twenty minutes, Chester was there with Brad, Joe and fox in tow. Chester imedeatly took charge of everything as soon as the ambulance arrived. They strapped me down to the bed thing and chester rode with me in the ambulance.
"I called Rob, he said he'd catch the next flight out of seattle. Dave and Mike will stay to do the interview and then come and see you."
He said as the paramedics tried to stop the bleeding in my knee. By now my body was numb to the pain from the anastetics that they gave me.
"This cant happen Chaz. I dont know what the **** I'll do if I cant ever play drums again!"
I said almost hysterically. He squeezed my hand.
"You'll be able to play again. I promise it."
Then they said that they'd have to do surgery on my knee to take out the shards of my broken knee cap and then do another surgery to replace the knee cap. The minute they got me in a room, chester looked at me.
"You know I have to tell your mother about this right?"
"Yeah but cant you wait till I'm knocked out before you tell her?"
Chester chuckeled. I still couldnt feel my lower body.
"We'll see. Atleast we'll wait till rob gets back here."
I nodded as they put me asleep for the operation to take all the fragments out of my knee. When I was almost compleatly under, Someone squeezed my hand. When I came too, Rob and Jimmy were both in the room.
"I'm sorry daddy."
I said feebily as my vision still swam back and forth. He smiled at me before he kissed my forehead.
"Dont worry kiddo. Its all good, I promise. "
Rob said as he rubbed my hand.
"I dont want you to be mad at me for making you miss the interview. "
"You're more important then some stupid interview. Mike and Dave are on now if you want to watch them."
Rob said as he flipped the TV channels. Jimmy helped me prop my bed up to watch the interview.
"So I thought Rob was suposed to be with you two."
The interviewer said.
"Well he had something come up back home with his daughter. But we're here."
Mike said.
"Alright then So Dave what do you think about all of the hubub about Jay-Z Joining your band?"
"Even though He was a pretty cool guy, hes not in the band. Our newest album will be out in spring some time."
"So tell me more about what happened to Rob's daughter."
"Well chester called us that she shattered her knee skateboarding."
Mike said. I rolled my eyes. Great now the whole world knows about my injury.
"ouch that sounds painful. Now there are roumers circulating around the internet that Rob and his wife are getting a divorce, is any of that true?"
"Nothing is certaint. Rob loves his daughters, his son and his wife almost as much as drumming."
"Now I want to know more about the sound that your new albums gonna have. "
I grabbed the remote and clicked the tv off.
"Do y'all ever get asked something even slightly interesting?"
Rob looked thoughtfull.
"Well there was this one question that I got asked. If I was stranded on a deserted island who in the band would I like to be stranded with."
I laughed and then winced from jarring my knee.
"who did you pick?"
"Uncle Joe because I'd have *** knows how much food to eat when I kill him."
"daddy?"
"Yeah Mel?"
"please dont tell mom."
