Fourth Episode! Billy's First Day!
He still couldn't really believe it. Billy's eyes were glued to the rollings hills and and opulent mansions scattered across the scenery of Beverly Heights, idly trying to pinch his arm, unable to tear his eyes away. It just felt like any second, they'd call the whole thing off, and slam the Dome right back on top of the mansion. Billy had only bothered looking outside because of the commotion the crowds lingering around the premises of Cobra Mansion were making.
Some rando family, was apparently claiming to be the god cousins of Billy Joe Cobra? Even in his thoughts it felt more like a question than reality. How could anyone fall for that? They could've at least spoken with him about it, like, 'Oh, by the way, your distant relatives are moving into your fabulous mansion Mister Cobra.' or something? How did they even count as family anyway? Didn't god cousin mean they weren't even technically related? And why the heck now? Billy had been "declared" deceased three years ago! Why hadn't they moved in then?
"At least that stupid Dome is gone. Who thought that was ever a good idea?" He grumbled, turning slowly to look out another window, trying to take in as much of the mansion scenery as he possibly could.
The Dome had been a "gift" from a Chinese businessfan who had been upset with news that fanatics and admirers of The Cobra were trespassing and attempting to steal from the Cobra Mansion. He'd paid for a huge cement dome to be put around the mansion to 'Immortalize the Cobra Legacy' and protect it from trespassers and thieves alike. Billy had hated it the moment he'd seen it being built. Because of that ugly dome, he'd been even more isolated from the outside world than before.
"It's like they want people to forget me…" Billy mumbled, eyeing the crowd of what he assumed to be greeters at the front gates.
He was feeling pretty out of it, not really sure how he felt about everything that was happening. He pulled his gaze away from the window to take a look at the mirror behind him, advancing towards it slowly, hoping he would finally see something that would satisfy him. He'd hated what he'd seen the first time he'd looked all those years ago, and as he finally caught his reflection in the mirror once again, he had a sinking realization that he felt no different today. Blue, clear, and washed out, what he saw in the mirror hadn't satisfied him for a very long time.
He could still remember the aftermath of that fateful day, the day he'd woken up to see through skin and floating feet. It had been super intense until he'd had the genius idea to find help 'Go find Cammie, she'll know what to do!'.
He'd done just that and had expected cries of alarm and shocked secretaries in the office, only to find...Nothing. No one looked at him, no one listened to him, and Cammie completely ignored him in favor of conference calls and business meetings.
When it was apparent that everyone at the office was obviously way too distracted to spare him a glance, he'd turned to Jessie, and then his entourage, and then Marco Venus, and by the end of the week he'd covered nearly every living soul in Beverly Heights!
"What the hell is going on?!" He'd screamed in the streets, looking for some kind of answer, a clue, something!
He'd just about given up on figuring out what had happened and resigned himself to believe he was dreaming when he'd turned the news on ( he was still able to watch T.V and touch things, thank God!) and seen the report. The terminology was pretty boring, so Billy had been seconds away from ignoring the report completely, before he'd heard the end of it, which was by far, the most interesting part.
"Billy Joe Cobra, age 26, has been reported missing by his Manager today, around 6:34 pm. Reporters are on scene, where witnesses say he was last seen entering his mansion in Beverly Heights after an interview with reporter Holly of the Beverly Heights Highlights. Members of his entourage have stated he was planning on participating in an after party with Marco Venus after his Welcome Home concert last Friday, but had not been seen-"
Billy had sat slack jawed, eyes glued to the T.V, looking for something, anything that would make what he was seeing make sense. It couldn't be what he thought it was, because that was just crazy.
"I'm dreaming..." Billy had concluded, turning off the T.V and going to sleep in his bed, allowing himself to believe that when he woke up, it would all be over.
In the end, he'd woken up to the same forced invisibility and blue complexion he'd went to sleep with, and after an intense I'm-totally-not-stuck-like-this makeover gone wrong, resigned himself to bawling on the couch and eating peanut butter. It was an emotional time.
Everyday since then, he'd woken up wondering when he'd finally wake up, because he would, no two ways about it. They'd find out that he'd been sucked into some alternate invisible realm, or that Billy was in some sort of half ghost coma that would end the minute they found his body, and that they'd only need locate the rest of him to reverse all this. Everyday he'd expected it, and everyday he'd been proven wrong.
He'd watched as the courts declared him legally dead the moment the first year of searching was up. Apparently, the general public had begun rioting over lack of police investigation and conspiracy theories alike, threatening the peace and world order of international governments over 'some overrated popstar'.
He'd watched as crowds of countless Cobra Heads thinned out day after day until the Dome covered up whatever view of them he had left. He'd watched the news cover some new pop star extraordinaire, calling whatever new idol 'The New, Billy Joe Cobra' as if it was a title to be won, instead of a person to be found. He'd watched his mansion gather dust, his lawn and hedges wilt away (due to lack of sunlight, stupid Dome) and his legacy wither like a poorly tended office plant, all while he watched, because he was watching, he'd never stopped watching.
Billy had watched, and he'd waited, and nobody found him, and he didn't wake up, no matter how hard he tried. His Manager got employed to new Musicians and artists, his entourage scattered to the winds to tend to some other idols, and Jessie became a self employed artist. They'd all moved on, without him.
So he continued to watch and wait, what else was there to do? He couldn't be seen, he couldn't he heard, and what was Billy without his presence, his most defining feature? He'd all but given up, and after what seemed like an eternity of waiting, the world deemed fit to pound one final nail into Billy's metaphorical coffin, the Dome was removed, and the Wrights were moving in.
"And you won't do a thing about it." Billy glared at his reflection, staring straight into hollow looking eyes with a spite he'd never thought he'd ever find directed at himself.
This is what it'd come to, all his accomplishments, all his belongings, and now his only home, wouldn't be his anymore, and what could he do? He barely existed enough to acknowledge his own agency, and he couldn't stand it!. He'd waited all this time for someone to find him, all the while he'd slowly been robbed of everything that made him himself.
Picking up his favorite guitar, he glared at his reflection and begun to sing.
Now come one come all to this tragic affair
Wipe off that makeup, what's in is despair
So throw on the black dress, mix in with the lot
You might wake up and notice you're someone you're not
If you look in the mirror and don't like what you see
You can find out firsthand what it's like to be me
So gather 'round piggies and kiss this goodbye
I'd encourage your smiles I'll expect you won't cry
Another contusion, my funeral jag
Here's my resignation, I'll serve it in drag
You've got front row seats to the penitence ball
When I grow up I want to be nothing at all!
I said yeah, yeah!
I said yeah, yeah!
C'mon C'mon C'mon I said
Get me the hell out of here!
Too young to die and my dear!
If you can hear me just walk away!
"Goodnight Everybody..." Billy sighed, singing just wasn't same without an audience, no matter how good the song was. He set his guitar aside and thought over his current dilemma. The real problem wasn't really him, it never was, the real problem was the people coming to move into the Cobra Mansion.
"They have no right!" He fumed, float/pacing around his room (That's right, his) and brainstorming some kind of solution. If there was one thing Billy knew, it was that he'd never get used to some family of jerks moving into his house without his permission. And even if they were in a Will or something, he was still here, so they'd just have to back off!
He smiled to himself, thinking, just maybe, this could actually go his way. So some tools were trying to move in, he wasn't exactly helpless. "Maybe if I spook'em...Yeah, we'll see how much they like this place after that!" He said, feeling more upbeat than before, finally allowing himself to be just a little bit excited about all this.
"And after I scare them outta The Cobra Mansion, I'll finally get some respect around here!" He exclaimed, looking around his room excitedly. Then he jerked to a stop at the sound of...cheering?.
Billy rushed to the window again, looking outside at the crowd loitering around the front gates of his house to see something very upsetting waiting for him. It was about five black cars slowly making their way through the front gates, and squeezed in the middle of all of them was a smaller, dingier looking SUV.
Billy scrunched up his nose at the sight of it. It reeked of poor, middle class at best, losers. Was that car really the best they could do? They were moving into The Cobra Mansion, they'd inherited his fortune for Christs sakes! They stuck out like a pus filled, sore thumb.
Even weirder, the welcoming crowd outside seemed to be throwing things at them. "Maybe poor people confetti?" Billy mused, he wasn't sure how things worked for people like them, he honestly wasn't very interested either. They wouldn't be sticking around if he had anything to say about it.
After what felt like an eternity of painfully slow driving, the car ( if you can call it that) finally passed through the gates without any greeters squeezing through as well. "Too late to turn back now..." He breath out, setting his shoulders in a hunch as he eyed his perfectly paved driveway, eyes searching for any cracks or potholes in the pavement to exploit. It might look nice on the surface, but at any moment, Billy was planning on giving those tools a real scare.
The car slowed to a stop, the Wright family remaining inside the car for a weirdly long time. "What are they waiting for? They should at least act excited, it's my mansion for pete's sake!" Billy huffed, looking between the SUV and the front door expectantly.
"Are they nervous or something" He pressed, floating closer to the window and squinting, hoping to catch sight of one of them. After another eternity of time, Billy tugged at his hair angrily "Seriously? What is their problem? Just get out of your stupid car so I can make you get back in it!"
Suddenly one of the doors opened, revealing a short brunett kid as he stepped out and slammed the door shut. "Now that's more like it!" Billy cheered, eyeing the newcomer with calculating eyes, not wanting to miss a thing. This would be a historic day in Cobra history after all.
To Billy's shock the kid wipped his head around and glared right at him. He jumped back, caught off guard and a bit shaken. He could have sworn the kid saw him. When he looked out the window again, the kid was back to ignoring him, looking around the mansion with angry eyes.
So he hadn't seen him. Obviously. He took in a shuddering breath he knew he didn't need, and steeled himself again, scowling at the kid and his now emerging family. He'd been stupid and let himself get his hopes up. Well no more! From now on he was going poltergeist, no more Mister Nice Cobra, he was going to be mean, and he wasn't holding back!
As the rest of the family stepped out of the car and began chatting idling about whos room was going to be whos and began heading towards the mansion, Billy kept one step ahead of them. He mentally cataloged every minute detail he saw, keeping a particularly determined eye on the brunette kid.
He would be the first to face his wrath. Let the rest of the family enjoy themselves, while he kept that kid on his toes. He may be invisible and mute, but he'd had enough of being ignored and dismissed! It was time he take an active role in his life again, and no one was going to get in his way. He was tired of watching and waiting. It was time to take action.
Billy hasn't made much progress in the seven stages of grief over the years, but at least he trying! Just four more to go Billy! While it's not too obvious, Billy still kind of believes he's alive. What? He might actually be stuck in another invisible parallel dimension! Or just a very unfortunate X-men. If you find ghosts more believable than that, you need to re examine your priorities! The song Billy was singing is called The End, by The almost painfully edgy My Chemical Romance! It looks like it helped Billy collect himself though. Watch out Wright Family! Watch out Spencer! Never give up Billy! I'm sure any day now, you'll be alive and amazing again, just keep trucking!
