A heavy silence filled the car as Viv and I drove the ten minutes to Mary's place. We didn't speak a single word, and as soon as the car stopped, Viv was halfway up the walk. I slowly followed her inside to allow the tension of the interaction, or lack thereof, to flow out of me.

"Hey," Tim greeted me as I pulled my boots off. "Where's Billy and Jackson?"

"Oh, Billy got hung up in his studio, and Jackson was running late this morning. They'll be along soon." I wasn't sure if Jackson wanted others to know about his hidden talent, so I thought it was best to obscure his part in the studio.

"Great," Tim muttered as he helped me with my jacket before we headed into the already full dining room.

"Finally," Pete cheered from his spot at the table.

"Nope, just the girls. Billy got in the studio this morning, so, of course, he's late," Tim complained.

"Seriously?" Tess shook her head at the idea.

"Yeah, I'm sure he was probably re-recording Brandon's album for him," Tim teased.

"He just got hung up. He'll be here any minute." My annoyance was growing at the complaints.

"We've heard that one before," Tony chuckled from his spot.

"Yeah, maybe we'll see him by New Year's," Pete added.

"I don't even know why I bother going to work; Billy just comes in and does it his way anyway," Tim grumbled as he flopped down in his chair.

"Does he? Or does he ensure everyone is given the best shot with their work before it goes to market? I don't know if you noticed, but he's pretty fucking successful at what he does, and instead of just living his life, he's sharing the benefits of his name, talent, and knowledge with other artists." I couldn't keep my voice even as the anger pushed it to a borderline scream.

"He's not the only one that's successful." Tim rose from his seat as his voice escalated.

"Yeah, and he gives you credit. I don't see him walking around bitching about you. Billy's the first to give credit to everyone around him if everything goes great. But if it falls flat, it's his name, Tim. Whenever something comes out about Shake Shock, it's not Tim Denning's Shake Shock Records. It's Billy Collins' Shake Shock Records. He puts his name on the line for everything that's produced. So, yeah, maybe he has a few ideas about making sure it's worth his name."

"I never said I wasn't grateful," Tim argued back.

"You don't have to say it; you should show it. All I've heard since I've gotten back is that Billy is controlling, he's changed, he's demanding, he takes over. Well, I've spent a fair amount of time with Billy and listened to him. I've asked him why he even bothers with the studio. And you know what he says? Because he wants to give other people a shot to do what they love. He gave you your career, Timmy. I'm not saying you aren't good at it and don't work your ass off, but he gave it to you. And he continues to give opportunities to other artists. He works with each of them like it's his own record. So, unless you're saying thank you, maybe you should shut the fuck up for once."

"Hello," Billy tentatively said from the hallway.

The entire room fell into a more resounding silence and just stared between me, Timmy, and Billy.

"What did I miss?" Billy's voice ebbed in a singing manner as he tried to crack the tension.

There was a long silence before Viv chimed in with, "oh, Lil was just a truth ninja, like a boss," eliciting a few relieved chuckles from the room.

Tim flopped onto his chair in defeat.

"I don't know what that means," Billy admitted as he approached me and let a hand fall softly onto the small of my back.

I couldn't look at him. I knew I was right, but the mix of anger and frustration resulted in tears welling in my eyes. Looking at Billy would undoubtedly cause them to spill over.

"I need a minute," I stammered before quickly pacing from the room.

"Lil?" Billy's voice called after me, but I didn't stop my stride.

I reached my former office and slammed the door behind me before finally letting go of the breath I had been holding. Only a few tears spilled over my bottom eyelids, and I leaned heavily on the door.

"Lil," Billy's voice came quietly from the other side of the door. "Are you okay?"

His sweet, concerned voice welled fresh tears in my eyes. His voice was so close; I was pretty sure his forehead rested against the other side of the closed door.

"No," I managed as I swallowed back the mounting sobs.

"Can I come in?" he asked tentatively.

I couldn't let him see me sobbing because Tim was a dick. It was all too childish. But my pause weighed on him.

"I can go. But if you need me, text me, and I'll come back." His voice was pained.

"No, wait." I quickly spoke to stop his departure. "Are you leaning on the door?"

"Yeah."

"Don't," I said, waiting a moment before opening the door to him.

"Hi," Billy softly spoke as he inspected my face, noting the tracks of my tears.

"Hi," I whimpered back.

His calloused finger found my chin and lifted it, so my eyes met his. "Hi," he said again with a slight smile.

"That's my line," but it pulled a small smile of my own to my lips.

"Yeah, I thought I'd borrow it. It's a good line, one of my favorites."

I let out a sigh to calm my nerves.

"So, do you want to tell me what the hell is going on?"

"Tim's a dick," I shot as I turned away from him and fell with a thud to the couch.

"Agreed, but we've known that for years."

"I'm not kidding, Billy. He has zero appreciation for all that you do," I argued.

"That I do? What were you arguing about?" His curiosity was piqued.

"He complained you were late, and when I said you got hung up in the studio, he complained you were probably just redoing other people's work."

Billy's eyes stayed trained on me as I spoke. If the idea of Tim criticizing him stung, he hid it well.

"I just lost it. He's so ungrateful. You work so hard for him, the family, and everyone working at the studio. I mean, all those artists you've helped."

"Lil, I don't do it alone," Billy conditioned.

"See, there you go. That's what I said. You take none of the credit. You give all this time and expertise to make sure that everything produced is amazing, and then you give all the credit away."

"She's right, Daddy," Viv said from the door.

Billy let out a sigh as he looked up at Viv.

"Everyone always complains that you're controlling, but I don't think you are. You want to make sure they put the best effort into everything. That's what you always tell me. It doesn't matter if everyone hates it; if I know I put in my best effort and am proud of it, it was a success."

"Come here," Billy called to her as she shifted closer to me. Viv plopped down, so we sandwiched Billy between us. "I appreciate what you both are saying, but I'm not a one-man show, despite being Billy Collins. There's no such thing as a one-man, or woman," he added as he nudged Viv, "show."

"But it's your name on the line," I reminded him.

"May I finish?" Billy raised an eyebrow at my impatience.

"Sorry," I murmured, causing a giggle from Viv.

"I appreciate what you're saying, but I'm not a one-person show. Everyone in my life deserves credit for everything I am and have. Tim works very hard at the studio, and his work is never lost on me. I can be controlling. Even with good intentions, controlling is controlling. I love giving opportunities to others. When I was starting, everything was scary." Billy paused and looked over my face. "You remember when we met?" He gave a sly smile. "I was a mess. I didn't know up from down."

"You were fine." I stubbornly sighed.

"I was many things, but 'fine' wasn't one of them." He sat back and continued his line of thought. "I was a mess, and this wise girl suggested I bring a piece of home with me on the road." He looked back at me again. "She suggested I bring Tim on the road with me, and it was the best advice I've ever received."

"She sounds wise," I agreed.

"Hi, kid over here that wasn't around twenty years ago. I mean, obviously, this girl was Lily, but let's try to keep this story for the full audience."

"Yes." Billy let out a laugh. "The girl was Lily."

"And I gave you that advice, so I didn't have to go on tour with you," I reminded him.

"Yeah, and how did that work out for you?" Billy teased.

"Pretty well, I wasn't the one waist-deep in a dumpster of Chinese food," I shot back at him.

"Woah, that's the story I want to hear." Viv sat up.

"Not the point here," Billy corrected.

"Later," I added with a wink to Viv.

"So, I took Tim on tour with me. And he has gone on every tour, every stop, every festival, and every appearance with me since."

"That's a lot of time with Uncle Tim," Viv murmured.

"At first, I thought I needed him there with me. But as time passed, I realized I didn't need him there. I could get up and play, and the tour manager would take care of everything. It'd have been fine. I wanted Tim there," Billy pointed out.

"What?" Viv immediately shot with a laugh.

"Hey now," Billy cautioned. "Remember when you tried track for a season?"

"Oh yeah, that was the worst," Viv recalled.

"Do you remember what you told me after you won your first race?"

"Um, can we have pizza for dinner?" Viv guessed.

Billy let out a laugh. "Yeah, probably, but do you remember what else you said?"

"No, but I'm sure you do," Viv groaned.

"You said it wasn't as much fun because there weren't other people to celebrate with when you crossed the finish line. In soccer, you have the entire team collapse on you when you get a goal. You all get to share the moment. Tim's my team. No matter what, I know he has my back."

"But does he?" Viv asked. "He's always complaining about you."

"I don't know if you all noticed, but I do my fair share of griping about Tim," Billy noted. I knew this. They both did a lot of arguing. I knew Billy needed Tim just as much, if not more, than Tim needed Billy.

"Yeah, but has he ever said thank you?" Viv pushed.

"He says it all the time, maybe not with words, but with what he does. He doesn't have to show up every day. He could go to any label in the country and be signed as an artist."

"Maybe I should say it with words," Tim murmured from the doorway.

"You don't have to; we're good, man," Billy offered. "Come on, Viv. This isn't your fight."

"Ugh, fine," Viv groaned. "But really, it's because I'm hungry." She pulled herself off the couch more to avoid three adults and an impending Hallmark moment. "But I stand by Lil being a truth ninja," she added as she held out a fist for me to bump, which I awkwardly reciprocated.

"Yeah, she's always been a truth ninja." Tim's eyes stayed trained on the floor as he spoke.

"So, this isn't my fight either," Billy said as he pulled himself up from the couch. He gazed back down at me with a slight smile on his lips. "I love you. Just remember, soul mate," he gently whispered as he kissed my forehead. As he straightened, he changed his focus to Tim. "And you're a dick, and that's why I love you." Billy clapped Tim on the shoulder as he approached.

"Do you love me enough to stay? Lil scares the shit out of me," Tim pleaded.

"Yeah, good luck with that," Billy laughed as he closed the door behind him.

"Um, I brought you a cannoli in case you're hungry," Tim offered.

"Oh, so you think I'm angry because I'm hungry?"

"Um, no. I brought one for me, and I thought you might get madder if I didn't bring one for you."

"I'll take it, but only because a truly good person never says no to one of Mary's cannoli."

"So, while you're chewing," Tim began. "I appreciate Billy and know very well that the life I lead is because of him."

"Both you and Tess keep talking about how he's controlling and doing everyone else's work in the studio."

"Lil, no one is more grateful for Billy than me. There's also no one closer to him. We've been through it all," but I didn't let him finish.

"Yeah, you've been through it all. So, when you heard that last album, what did you do?"

"Wait, is that what this is about?" Tim stiffened at my assertion.

"Yes, all the pressure is on him. Do you even hear him when he asks for help?"

"You're fucking kidding me right now?" He was bristling again as we both tossed the cannolis aside.

"No, I'm not. He's not as in control as you act like he is."

"You don't think I know that? Seriously, this is hilarious coming from you."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" But I knew what he meant and didn't want him to tell me.

"I've been supporting him for over forty years. And you know when I supported him the most? Let's see; there was the time his girl crushed his heart when he was twenty-five, then again when she got married to someone else, then again when she crushed him at thirty-five. Ring any bells? I'm the one that's here. I'm the one that actually supports him and always has. You can sit here and judge moments all you want because that's all you have, Lil. You have moments because you never stick around for life."

"Fuck you, Tim."

"You have. Every fucking time you walk away from Billy, you fuck me too. I'll never turn my back on him, and I'll keep putting him back together, but maybe you should look at yourself and ask who isn't appreciating Billy. Now, I'm fucking starving, and Mary has cooked all morning. So, you're going to slap a fucking smile on your face and play nice because we're stuck with each other. But, honestly, Lil, I'm sick of this. I'm sick of you coming in here and judging everything. So, us, you and me, we're done."

He didn't wait for me to respond; instead, he picked up his cannoli and charged out the door.