party in the back anthology

Nightmare support

After another exhausting day of tour life; after working their way through another after-party, the band plus Anthony jumped into the van and headed back to their hotel that Green Day's management team had gotten them for the night.

They were all so tired from the long day that only a couple small exchange of words occurred during the short trip back. One of which was Dougie complaining about how the three shot espresso he drank before the show didn't help him very much, to which Anthony told him not to be so sure about that.

"I can't wait to get in the shower," Freddie sighed moments after the coffee conversation took place.

"Same," said Ollie sitting in the seat behind him.

"I might pass out as soon as we get there," Payton muttered. "Today was kind of a lot."

"I know right?"  Dougie agreed. "That coffee I had was nothing compared to all we did today. I'm definitely going to just sleep then shower in the morning."

"Man..." Anthony tsked from behind the wheel. "I'm falling asleep already!"

Everyone shared a tired laugh even though Anthony may or may not have been lying.

A few hours later, at the dark and early time of 3-am, an hour and a half after he and Payton settled down for the night, Dougie was awake and staring at the ceiling. As soon as his head hit the pillow that night, Dougie quickly realized that he really was not as tired as he thought he was in the van. It was around an hour of anxious tossing and turning in frustration until he put on his headphones and accepted he wouldn't be sleeping for a while longer.

By 3-am, Dougie had been dozing off for some time while the music in his ears shifted into the back of his mind. He blinked after a few minutes, realizing that finally the caffeine seemed to be wearing off. As he paused his music, Dougie yawned and slid his headphones off of his ears to set them aside on his nightstand. He rolled onto his side and closed his eyes.

Then they shot open again.

From Payton's side of the bed it sounded like he was... at this late? Seriously?

Dougie lifted his head and squinted at the shadow across the room. He quickly realized something else was going on here.

"Payton?" Dougie croaked in a low voice. Apparently he wasn't loud enough over the quick panting so he tried again, sitting up and speaking clearly. "Hey, Payton!"

The whimpering stopped and his head flew off the pillow. "Huh?" Payton asked warily. He seemed to realize what was happening right away, and he sighed and pressed his palms against his face, lowering his head back onto the bed. "I'm sorry, Doug," he whispered.

Dougie sat on his elbow as his stomach sunk. "It's okay. I was already awake 'cause of the caffeine," he mumbled uneasily.

He listened to Payton release a shaking breath until it hitched. "I was doing so good."

Dougie frowned as something painful streaked down the inside chest.

"I'm sorry," Payton said quietly.

"Don't be sorry," Dougie responded, apprehensively shoving his legs out of the tightly tucked hotel bed sheets. "I mean— it's not your fault."

As he heard Payton struggle to contain himself, Dougie remembered when his older sister Hallie would get terrible nightmares when she was in her teens. That was back in San Francisco when their rooms neighbored eachother's, so Dougie would be the one to hear her if she managed to wake up crying or gasping for air. This sense of familiarity gave Dougie a certain drive to get moving and help out.