FicWad

Here you go, kiddos. Happy weekend to all :)

I sat on the couch in our living room. I was so bored, I was almost in tears. I’d been flipping through the few television channels the complex provided for about an hour now.

I sighed, got up off the couch, and strolled over to the window. The sun was barely peaking through the cloudy, January sky. It looked like it was going to start snowing at anytime. I missed the sunshine. I missed warmth. The stupid apartment complex’s heat decided that it wanted to break yesterday.

Gerard had told me to stay inside and that Cole was probably prowling through the city looking for me right now.

I couldn’t take anymore of being inside. I hadn’t really left the apartment for two weeks. Cabin fever was starting to set in and I was going to end up in the loony bin. I needed to get some fresh air.

I pulled on my purple Converse high tops and slipped on my favorite zebra striped hoodie. After digging around in the drawers of the kitchen, I found the notebook where Gerard kept all his lyrics and ripped out a blank page of it then grabbed a pen.

‘Gee,
Went to get something from Starbucks.
Xo,
Hazel’

I stuck the note on the fridge with a magnet. Even though it was likely that he wouldn’t be back before I returned, that would most likely be the first place he went to when he walked in.

I walked out the front door and down the steps of our crummy apartment. The cold air nipped at my face. In a way, it felt good. I was out of that stupid cell and out in the world. The air smelled of car exhaust, but I didn’t care.

The good thing about being in New York is that there is a Starbucks on pretty much every street. I took a quick trip a block over, taking my time that is, and walked into Starbucks.

I approached the counter, thinking it was a little strange that it was so dead inside of this one.

“A chocolate muffin and a French vanilla frappuchino.” I told the lady, then handed her the exact amount of money that she needed. She handed me my muffin in a small bag and started making me my frozen coffee.

Yeah, it was the middle of winter, but I hated warm coffee. Anything is better than it.

“Here you go, ma’am.” She told me.

I thanked her and took my drink out of her hands. I walked out and stood on the street corner, waiting for the walk signal to appear. The sky started to spit out a small amount of snow. I pulled my hood up over my head as the crossing walk sign changed. I headed across the road, then stopped dead in my tracks.

Oh, fuck.

Cole.

He was standing there in the middle of the crosswalk, facing me, dressed in a large black overcoat. People were rushing around him. I lowered my head so that my face was slightly facing toward the ground. I pushed my drunk up towards my mouth, in hopes that it hid my face even more. I held my breath as I started to walk by him.

I listened as he smelled the air deeply.

Nothing happened.

I took a few more steps, then looked behind me. He still stood in the middle of the walk way. The only thing that moved was his head as he scanned through the crowd of people.

I thanked every single God that any religion ever had, that the bags Gerard had made for me worked.

I hurried home, shut the door, and locked it. Dropping my iced drink and bag with my muffin in it on an end table, I attempted to get a hold of myself. I checked the two windows in the front rooms to make sure they were locked and then pulled drapes. I caught my breath and looked over at the clock.

6:00 pm.

Gerard had come home about this time yesterday.

I went into the kitchen area and pulled the note off the fridge before wrinkling it up and tossing it in the trash. I went back into the living room pulled the remote out of the side of the couch and flicked on the television.

Then, I jumped as the phone rang.

“Hello?” I answered as I picked it up off the receiver, trying not to let my nerves break through.

“Hey,” Gerard said. I was so relieved to hear his tired voice. “Haze, I’m gonna be way late tonight. So, you can go ahead and eat without me.

“Gee-”

“I have to go. I just wanted to let you know. I’ll see you when I get home. Love you.” He hung up.

I sighed and placed the phone back on the hook. I didn’t feel like cooking dinner for just myself that evening. Looking over at the end table on the other side of the couch, I sighed at my chocolate chip muffin and frozen drink. Supper was going to be deliciously sweet tonight.

I watched television and ate my so called dinner. After a few hours of watching a marathon of ‘What Not To Wear,” I grew bored and tired. It was about twenty till eleven.

There was still no Gerard.

I laid down on the couch and slowly drifted to sleep.