Categories > Celebrities > Fall Out Boy > Of All the Gin Joints in All the World
“Zoe Peterson, Universal Music, Victor Langely’s office. How may I help you?”
“Zoe,” I heard a voice say on the other line, “It’s Victor. I need you to go to a meeting for me, the three o’ clock with the Decaydance reps. Nina will be there too so you just have to take notes. I’ll be in the office at four to hear your report.” Before I could respond the assignment I heard a dial tone, Victor had hung up.
“All right,” I muttered to myself seeing it was already two forty-five. I stepped out of the lobby of Victor’s office and told the front desk girl that I was going to a meeting and to take all of Victor’s calls for me for the next hour. She gave a half smile and nodded her head. “I hate people,” I muttered to myself. Universal was a much bigger pool than Decaydance and I was a much smaller fish. The only reason I even got to be the secretary/assistant to Victor was because Jarod put a good word in for me.
I grabbed a legal pad and a couple of pens and went into the meeting room to find everybody was just beginning to sit down. Smiling to Nina I went and sat next to her, “Victor’s not going to make it,” I whispered to her, “He asked me to take notes.” She simply nodded and I turned my chair to see who the artist reps were from Decaydance.
“Zoe?!” Brendon Urie called out with a big grin.
Looking shocked Nina threw me a glance, “You know each other?” she asked curiously.
Before I could answer the other artist representative, Gabe Saporta, spoke, “She used to work for Decaydance. We miss having her around.” He said staring at me with no smile on his lips.
I shrank into my seat and took notes diligently as Nina and the guys discussed the tour that they wanted to put together that bands on the Universal Record label wanted in on. After an hour and three pages of notes later the meeting was over and Nina left. “Oh em gee Zoe! You work here now?!” Brendon said walking over to me and giving me a hug.
“Yeah,” I muttered taking a step back and looking at Gabe, “How are you guys?” I asked trying to change the subject.
“Well I’m fine,” Gabe said crossing his arms, “Some of the other people in our label though are depressed and moody and no longer any fun since you left.”
I sighed and bit my tongue. I knew he was referring to Pete. Daily calls from Nick back home told me Pete, with no idea where I was living, sent flowers and bears, and candy, and cards to the old apartment hoping Nick would forward them. I told him to get rid of it. All of it. “Sorry to hear that,” I said with a grimace, “but I couldn’t stay there any longer.” Nina came into the room a moment later and gave me a look, “Sorry guys but I have to go. Enjoy California.”
~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~
“I’ll go grab the car,” Brendon said snatching the keys from Gabe, “I wanna drive!”
“I’ll be here,” Gabe said, slipping his cell phone from his pocket. After Brendon walked to the parking garage Gabe pressed his fourth speed dial. “Hey Pete?”
“Yeah?” Pete answered on the other end of the line.
“I’ve got some interesting information… but I want you to know what I’m telling you is not a suggestion of acting on it…”
“Okay…” Pete said confused, “What’s up? How’d the meeting go?”
“The meeting,” Gabe said letting out a sigh, “was fine. Looking forward to the tour. Anyways, the man who we were going to meet with, Victor Langely, wasn’t there so his assistant came in to take notes for him.”
“Well I’ll be in Los Angeles in an hour, we had our last show last night, so I can take the second meeting if you don’t want to…”
“No Pete,” Gabe said quickly, “His assistant was Zoe.” There was silence for a moment, “Pete?”
“Yeah. I’m here.” He said, barely audible. “I have to go now Gabe. Thanks.”
“You’re welcome bro.”
“GET IN THE CAR!” Brendon yelled through the window as he pulled up to the curb.
~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~
After grabbing dinner with a friend I drove back to Universal’s apartment building. which was on the beach. I sighed to myself as I thought about seeing Gabe and Brendon earlier that day and what Gabe had said. I shook my head and stepped out of the car and walked up to the top floor and let myself into the apartment. It was nice living on the top floor because of the view but the eighth floor sucks if the elevator breaks, which was often.
Breathing heavily I changed into my pajamas and collapsed onto the couch, flipping the television onto Fox to watch reruns of House, M.D. I fell asleep but was woken by heavy pounding on my door at three A.M. “What in the hell?” I muttered to myself walking over to the door. I looked out of the peephole but saw no one so I figured I was hearing things and started back to my bedroom when I heard more knocking. “Fuck my life!” I said to myself going back to the door. I undid the deadbolt and opened the door, “What do you want!” I said to the shadowy figure that was bent at the waist. I grabbed my glasses and was shocked to see Pete Wentz at my doorway. “Pete?”
“One minute” he said heaving deep breaths in and out as he was bent over, “God damn…” he muttered taking some more breaths, “The elevator… not….” Deep breath, “Working… had to walk up…. So many stairs…”
Crossing my arms I let out a sigh, “What do you want Pete? How did you find me?”
“Water… please… water..”
I clicked my tongue and walked into the kitchen, “C’mon in Pete.” I muttered and grabbed him a water bottle, tossing it onto the couch. “Have a seat.”
“Thanks,” he said collapsing onto the couch, gulping down nearly the entire bottle of water.
“Talk,” I said coldly, leaning on the counter.
“Nice to see you too,” he muttered. “Gabe told me you were working for Universal and I looked up your address.”
“What do you want Pete?”
“To apologize,” he said slowly, regaining his normal breathing patterns.
“Alright, you apologized, can you leave now?”
“No,” he said slowly standing up, “The past couple of months on tour have completely sucked without you there. I miss you,” he said running a hand through his hair, “I miss your sarcasm, your OCD tendencies, your anger, everything. I miss you Zoe.”
“You should have thought about that before you tried to get with someone else,” I muttered. My mind flashbacked to when Kevin caught Pete and I making out. I sounded just like him, “This is what it felt like..” I muttered to myself.
“What?” Pete asked, taking a step closer.
“Nothing,” I mumbled.
“Zoe… I’ve changed. I swear. I haven’t been with anyone since you left. I’m trying to be better,” he said taking another step closer to me and he grabbed my hand, “I’m trying to be the man you deserve. And you deserve much better than me but I hope that maybe. Just maybe you can give me a chance to try.”
I could see it in his eyes and my heart told me he was telling the truth. My brain told me he would do it all over again, be sweet but then betray me. I let out a deep sigh and looked at Pete, “Okay,” I said softly, if I stayed at Universal it wouldn’t have been a problem for us to be together. “But I swear if you do anything like that again you’ll have other people to deal with. Namely an angry Nick who is sick of receiving flowers.”
Pete smiled and let out a laugh, “Deal,” he said and kissed me just like he had at the Tire Emporium. “I love you Zoe Peterson.”
THE END
“Zoe,” I heard a voice say on the other line, “It’s Victor. I need you to go to a meeting for me, the three o’ clock with the Decaydance reps. Nina will be there too so you just have to take notes. I’ll be in the office at four to hear your report.” Before I could respond the assignment I heard a dial tone, Victor had hung up.
“All right,” I muttered to myself seeing it was already two forty-five. I stepped out of the lobby of Victor’s office and told the front desk girl that I was going to a meeting and to take all of Victor’s calls for me for the next hour. She gave a half smile and nodded her head. “I hate people,” I muttered to myself. Universal was a much bigger pool than Decaydance and I was a much smaller fish. The only reason I even got to be the secretary/assistant to Victor was because Jarod put a good word in for me.
I grabbed a legal pad and a couple of pens and went into the meeting room to find everybody was just beginning to sit down. Smiling to Nina I went and sat next to her, “Victor’s not going to make it,” I whispered to her, “He asked me to take notes.” She simply nodded and I turned my chair to see who the artist reps were from Decaydance.
“Zoe?!” Brendon Urie called out with a big grin.
Looking shocked Nina threw me a glance, “You know each other?” she asked curiously.
Before I could answer the other artist representative, Gabe Saporta, spoke, “She used to work for Decaydance. We miss having her around.” He said staring at me with no smile on his lips.
I shrank into my seat and took notes diligently as Nina and the guys discussed the tour that they wanted to put together that bands on the Universal Record label wanted in on. After an hour and three pages of notes later the meeting was over and Nina left. “Oh em gee Zoe! You work here now?!” Brendon said walking over to me and giving me a hug.
“Yeah,” I muttered taking a step back and looking at Gabe, “How are you guys?” I asked trying to change the subject.
“Well I’m fine,” Gabe said crossing his arms, “Some of the other people in our label though are depressed and moody and no longer any fun since you left.”
I sighed and bit my tongue. I knew he was referring to Pete. Daily calls from Nick back home told me Pete, with no idea where I was living, sent flowers and bears, and candy, and cards to the old apartment hoping Nick would forward them. I told him to get rid of it. All of it. “Sorry to hear that,” I said with a grimace, “but I couldn’t stay there any longer.” Nina came into the room a moment later and gave me a look, “Sorry guys but I have to go. Enjoy California.”
~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~
“I’ll go grab the car,” Brendon said snatching the keys from Gabe, “I wanna drive!”
“I’ll be here,” Gabe said, slipping his cell phone from his pocket. After Brendon walked to the parking garage Gabe pressed his fourth speed dial. “Hey Pete?”
“Yeah?” Pete answered on the other end of the line.
“I’ve got some interesting information… but I want you to know what I’m telling you is not a suggestion of acting on it…”
“Okay…” Pete said confused, “What’s up? How’d the meeting go?”
“The meeting,” Gabe said letting out a sigh, “was fine. Looking forward to the tour. Anyways, the man who we were going to meet with, Victor Langely, wasn’t there so his assistant came in to take notes for him.”
“Well I’ll be in Los Angeles in an hour, we had our last show last night, so I can take the second meeting if you don’t want to…”
“No Pete,” Gabe said quickly, “His assistant was Zoe.” There was silence for a moment, “Pete?”
“Yeah. I’m here.” He said, barely audible. “I have to go now Gabe. Thanks.”
“You’re welcome bro.”
“GET IN THE CAR!” Brendon yelled through the window as he pulled up to the curb.
~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~
After grabbing dinner with a friend I drove back to Universal’s apartment building. which was on the beach. I sighed to myself as I thought about seeing Gabe and Brendon earlier that day and what Gabe had said. I shook my head and stepped out of the car and walked up to the top floor and let myself into the apartment. It was nice living on the top floor because of the view but the eighth floor sucks if the elevator breaks, which was often.
Breathing heavily I changed into my pajamas and collapsed onto the couch, flipping the television onto Fox to watch reruns of House, M.D. I fell asleep but was woken by heavy pounding on my door at three A.M. “What in the hell?” I muttered to myself walking over to the door. I looked out of the peephole but saw no one so I figured I was hearing things and started back to my bedroom when I heard more knocking. “Fuck my life!” I said to myself going back to the door. I undid the deadbolt and opened the door, “What do you want!” I said to the shadowy figure that was bent at the waist. I grabbed my glasses and was shocked to see Pete Wentz at my doorway. “Pete?”
“One minute” he said heaving deep breaths in and out as he was bent over, “God damn…” he muttered taking some more breaths, “The elevator… not….” Deep breath, “Working… had to walk up…. So many stairs…”
Crossing my arms I let out a sigh, “What do you want Pete? How did you find me?”
“Water… please… water..”
I clicked my tongue and walked into the kitchen, “C’mon in Pete.” I muttered and grabbed him a water bottle, tossing it onto the couch. “Have a seat.”
“Thanks,” he said collapsing onto the couch, gulping down nearly the entire bottle of water.
“Talk,” I said coldly, leaning on the counter.
“Nice to see you too,” he muttered. “Gabe told me you were working for Universal and I looked up your address.”
“What do you want Pete?”
“To apologize,” he said slowly, regaining his normal breathing patterns.
“Alright, you apologized, can you leave now?”
“No,” he said slowly standing up, “The past couple of months on tour have completely sucked without you there. I miss you,” he said running a hand through his hair, “I miss your sarcasm, your OCD tendencies, your anger, everything. I miss you Zoe.”
“You should have thought about that before you tried to get with someone else,” I muttered. My mind flashbacked to when Kevin caught Pete and I making out. I sounded just like him, “This is what it felt like..” I muttered to myself.
“What?” Pete asked, taking a step closer.
“Nothing,” I mumbled.
“Zoe… I’ve changed. I swear. I haven’t been with anyone since you left. I’m trying to be better,” he said taking another step closer to me and he grabbed my hand, “I’m trying to be the man you deserve. And you deserve much better than me but I hope that maybe. Just maybe you can give me a chance to try.”
I could see it in his eyes and my heart told me he was telling the truth. My brain told me he would do it all over again, be sweet but then betray me. I let out a deep sigh and looked at Pete, “Okay,” I said softly, if I stayed at Universal it wouldn’t have been a problem for us to be together. “But I swear if you do anything like that again you’ll have other people to deal with. Namely an angry Nick who is sick of receiving flowers.”
Pete smiled and let out a laugh, “Deal,” he said and kissed me just like he had at the Tire Emporium. “I love you Zoe Peterson.”
THE END
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