Categories > Celebrities > My Chemical Romance > Lifeline
When Gerard and I walked around school on Monday, we saw that people were openly
staring at us, some even whispering to each other about what they saw. We didn’t think that
us walking around holding hands would cause that much of a stir, but I guess we were both
proven wrong, especially when he had his arm around my shoulders at lunch and we kissed each
other goodbye as I went to get on my bus. I guess you could say that our entire junior class
was shocked that Gerard and I had become a couple, but neither of us cared.
The only one that I was really keeping an eye on was Bianca. While there was a certain
amount of satisfaction to be felt at proving her wrong about me never being able to have a
boyfriend, I was pretty worried. She hadn’t exactly forgiven me for getting her in trouble
with our coach that one day. Pushing me against the wall had earned her a suspension from
cheerleading, and a small part of me suspected that she was coming up with something to get
back at me. While I was told not to worry about it, I knew I’d have to be on my guard with
that girl.
Working on some homework that day after school, I didn’t exactly hear the first knock on my
bedroom door, but I did the second time. “Yeah?”
My mom and dad both came in, and I instantly knew something was up. Normally if my parents
wanted something just one of them would let me know, it had to be pretty major if they both
wanted to tell me something.
“Mom? Dad? Is everything okay?” I asked nervously.
“Everything’s fine.” Mom nodded. “We were just wondering something about your friend
Gerard.”
“Um…what do you want to know?”
“We’re just curious…are you two a couple?”
My face turned a wicked shade of red as I mumbled, “Yes. Are you guys…you know…okay with
it?”
“Can we be honest with you?”
I braced myself for the worst. “Yes.”
“We think it’s wonderful.” Mom smiled.
“You do?” I was shocked.
“Yes. By the way you talked about him, we kind of figured it out.” Dad admitted. “We just
want you to be happy, and he sounds like a nice guy.”
“Where we’re going with this is that we want to meet him.” Mom explained. “Invite him over
for dinner sometime, and we’ll get to know him.”
“I don’t know if you guys would approve, though.” I bit my lip.
“Why not?”
“I…I don’t think you guys will like him because of the way he looks. To you, he’ll seem
so…dark, but he’s not as he appears.”
“You know we don’t judge people just by how they look. We’re more open-minded than that.”
Dad said. I only nodded, but I still wasn’t sure if they’d feel that way when they met
Gerard.
**
Later that week I was pacing the floor in the front hall of my house as my parents put the
finishing touches on that night’s dinner. Gerard was going to come at any minute, and then
I’d see if my parents really meant what they said about not judging him. The doorbell rang
and I ran into the kitchen. “Guys, he’s here. Promise me that you won’t share any stories
about me as a little kid, and that you won’t ask him any embarrassing or accusing
questions.”
“Don’t worry, Valerie, we’ll be good.” Mom promised.
“Hey!” Gerard scooped me up in a hug and exchanging a quick kiss with me when I opened the
door.
“Hey, yourself.” I smiled and hung up his coat in the front closet.
“Does this look okay? I tried to wear something a bit nicer for meeting your parents.”
I looked him over. He was wearing dark wash jeans, a black sweater and black Converse. “That
looks perfect.” I motioned for him to follow me into the kitchen. “Gerard, these are my
parents. Mom, Dad, this is Gerard Way.” I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw my parents
shake Gerard’s hand and invited him to take a seat next to my regular spot at the table.
“So Gerard, Val’s told us that you’re in a band.” My dad was the first one to speak at
dinner.
“Yeah, I do vocals.” Gerard nodded. “But it’s just something we’re doing for fun.”
“So you’re not trying to get a record deal or something?”
“Not yet, we’re trying to finish high school. I’m still looking at colleges and stuff
because I want to have something to fall back on in case a career with the band doesn’t work
out.” Gerard shrugged.
“What’re you thinking about going to college for?” Mom asked.
“I want to be an artist of some kind.”
“You never told me that, Gerard.” I remarked.
“Really?” Gerard sounded surprised. “I thought I did.”
“Valerie’s thinking of doing the same thing.” Dad said. “Are there any art schools you’re
interested in?”
“Well, I’ve looked at a few but so far I really like the School of Visual Arts in Manhattan.
They have something for everyone there.” Gerard then turned to me. “Valerie, my mom’s
promised me a visit there sometime, and I could ask her if you could come to check the place
out with us if you wanted to.”
“That’d be cool.” I nodded. As much as I hated even thinking about going to college, I
wanted to find a place that I’d have a good time at.
As the night went on, I was happy to see that Gerard was making progress with my family. He
had a number of in-depth conversations with my dad, he was really nice to my mom, and he
didn’t treat my sister as a child but rather a young teenager, which was exactly how she
liked to be treated at the age of eleven. He answered all of the questioned they asked him,
but they weren’t embarrassing or personal like I thought they’d be. He explained what it was
like growing up in New Jersey, his really close bond with Mikey and the various experiences
he had playing in My Chemical Romance. It’s true when they say time flies when you’re having
fun, because all too soon it was time for him to leave.
“My mom wants to meet Valerie soon, so would it be okay with you guys if she came over to my
house for dinner next weekend?” Gerard asked just before he left.
“Of course. It was wonderful to finally meet you, Gerard.” Mom smiled.
“Thanks, it was great to meet you all as well.”
A round of hugs and goodbyes were exchanged before he closed the door behind him. I then
knew it was time for my parents to share with me their opinions about Gerard. “So…what do
you guys think of him?” I asked timidly.
“We like him, Valerie. We like him a lot.” Dad nodded.
Truthfully, that really surprised me. “Seriously? I mean, he doesn’t scare you at all?”
“No, he doesn’t. Gerard’s a good guy, we like him.”
“He’s a nice boy with good intentions, he’s respectful to you, and I don’t think you know
how happy it makes us to see you have a special someone.” Mom added. “We don’t care what he
looks like, because that doesn’t matter in the long run. You don’t have anything to worry
about, because we approve.”
I gave each of them a grateful hug. “You guys don’t know how relieved I am to know that.”
*
“So, you ready to venture into Way territory?” Gerard joked as he and I walked up the
walkway to the front door of his house.
“I guess I am.” I laughed. I knew just how nervous he’d felt when meeting my parents,
because I was now feeling that same way.
“Don’t look so nervous, they’ll like you a lot.” Gerard smiled at me reassuringly. After we
hung up our coats Gerard brought me into their living room where a woman with wavy blonde
hair was sitting and drinking a mug of tea. “Valerie, this is my mom. Mom, I’d like you to
meet my girlfriend Valerie.” Upon hearing that his mom looked up at me with a smile and got
up to hug me properly.
“Hi honey, it’s great to meet you. And please, call me Donna, all of Mikey’s and Gerard’s
friends do. I don’t really like being called Mrs. Way, it makes me feel old and that’s not a
fun feeling.” Donna admitted and I laughed. She was really cool for a mom! The oven beeped
signaling that dinner was ready so we joined Mikey in the kitchen, who was busy pouring
drinks.
“Mikey, has Dad called?” Donna asked.
“Yeah, he’s bringing Grandma over to join us.” Mikey nodded and I saw Gerard’s face light
up. He told me that the two of them were really close to their grandmother, and it turned
out that she had been the one who had taught Gerard how to sing and to draw.
“Okay. Valerie, did Gerard ever tell you that he had the title role in a fourth grade
production of Peter Pan?” Donna asked as we sat down.
“Aw, Mom!” Gerard groaned as Mikey laughed.
“No, I don’t think he did.” I smiled.
“Well, it was at a new school he was going to when we still lived in Belleville. We all
encouraged him to try out, and he got the part.” She got up and returned to the table with a
picture in her hand and gave it to me. “We even have a picture of him in his costume.”
“Aww!” I squealed. The picture showcased a nine-year-old Gerard wearing a green tunic, green
tights and a green hat. “That’s so adorable, Gerard!”
“Mom, put that thing away, please! You’re embarrassing me!”
“Okay, okay.” Donna laughed.
“Aren’t I invited to this little party of yours?” An older woman came into the kitchen
followed by a man who I assumed was Gerard and Mikey’s father.
“Hey, Grandma!” Gerard shared a long hug with her and I smiled. “It’s awesome to see you
again.”
”It’s good to see you too, dear.” She then caught sight of me and looked at Gerard
meaningfully. “Now Gerard, you must tell me who this beautiful young lady is!”
He laughed. “This is my girlfriend Valerie. I invited her over for dinner tonight.”
To my surprise, his grandma gave me a hug. I had to keep myself from tearing up right there,
my grandmother had died when I was fourteen and I’d forgotten what it was like to have a
grandmother. Having Gerard’s grandma there reminded me of what I’d been deprived of since
then.
“It’s wonderful to finally meet you, dear.” She smiled. “Gerard has told me so much about
you that I wanted to make sure I got to meet you sometime.”
“Thank you.” I was surprised but pleased to be told that.
I had a really great time having dinner with Gerard’s family, mostly because of how friendly
they were being towards me. His parents and I got to know each other better, Gerard and
Mikey told us about some new songs they were coming up with for the band, and Gerard and I
shared the story of how we became a couple since we met that first day of school.
When I had to leave, Gerard’s dad gave me a hug and Donna kissed my cheek. But it was what
his grandma said that really got me. She smiled at me kindly and said, “Valerie, you are a
very sweet and beautiful young lady, and you and Gerard are just adorable together. Thank
you for making my oldest grandson so happy.” When she said that, I couldn’t help but give
her a hug of my own. She was such a sweet elderly lady!
“See? I told you they’d like you a lot!” Gerard grinned as we drove back to my house.
“Yeah, yeah, rub it in, why don’t you?” I rolled my eyes but we both laughed.
Operation Meet the Parents was now complete.
staring at us, some even whispering to each other about what they saw. We didn’t think that
us walking around holding hands would cause that much of a stir, but I guess we were both
proven wrong, especially when he had his arm around my shoulders at lunch and we kissed each
other goodbye as I went to get on my bus. I guess you could say that our entire junior class
was shocked that Gerard and I had become a couple, but neither of us cared.
The only one that I was really keeping an eye on was Bianca. While there was a certain
amount of satisfaction to be felt at proving her wrong about me never being able to have a
boyfriend, I was pretty worried. She hadn’t exactly forgiven me for getting her in trouble
with our coach that one day. Pushing me against the wall had earned her a suspension from
cheerleading, and a small part of me suspected that she was coming up with something to get
back at me. While I was told not to worry about it, I knew I’d have to be on my guard with
that girl.
Working on some homework that day after school, I didn’t exactly hear the first knock on my
bedroom door, but I did the second time. “Yeah?”
My mom and dad both came in, and I instantly knew something was up. Normally if my parents
wanted something just one of them would let me know, it had to be pretty major if they both
wanted to tell me something.
“Mom? Dad? Is everything okay?” I asked nervously.
“Everything’s fine.” Mom nodded. “We were just wondering something about your friend
Gerard.”
“Um…what do you want to know?”
“We’re just curious…are you two a couple?”
My face turned a wicked shade of red as I mumbled, “Yes. Are you guys…you know…okay with
it?”
“Can we be honest with you?”
I braced myself for the worst. “Yes.”
“We think it’s wonderful.” Mom smiled.
“You do?” I was shocked.
“Yes. By the way you talked about him, we kind of figured it out.” Dad admitted. “We just
want you to be happy, and he sounds like a nice guy.”
“Where we’re going with this is that we want to meet him.” Mom explained. “Invite him over
for dinner sometime, and we’ll get to know him.”
“I don’t know if you guys would approve, though.” I bit my lip.
“Why not?”
“I…I don’t think you guys will like him because of the way he looks. To you, he’ll seem
so…dark, but he’s not as he appears.”
“You know we don’t judge people just by how they look. We’re more open-minded than that.”
Dad said. I only nodded, but I still wasn’t sure if they’d feel that way when they met
Gerard.
**
Later that week I was pacing the floor in the front hall of my house as my parents put the
finishing touches on that night’s dinner. Gerard was going to come at any minute, and then
I’d see if my parents really meant what they said about not judging him. The doorbell rang
and I ran into the kitchen. “Guys, he’s here. Promise me that you won’t share any stories
about me as a little kid, and that you won’t ask him any embarrassing or accusing
questions.”
“Don’t worry, Valerie, we’ll be good.” Mom promised.
“Hey!” Gerard scooped me up in a hug and exchanging a quick kiss with me when I opened the
door.
“Hey, yourself.” I smiled and hung up his coat in the front closet.
“Does this look okay? I tried to wear something a bit nicer for meeting your parents.”
I looked him over. He was wearing dark wash jeans, a black sweater and black Converse. “That
looks perfect.” I motioned for him to follow me into the kitchen. “Gerard, these are my
parents. Mom, Dad, this is Gerard Way.” I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw my parents
shake Gerard’s hand and invited him to take a seat next to my regular spot at the table.
“So Gerard, Val’s told us that you’re in a band.” My dad was the first one to speak at
dinner.
“Yeah, I do vocals.” Gerard nodded. “But it’s just something we’re doing for fun.”
“So you’re not trying to get a record deal or something?”
“Not yet, we’re trying to finish high school. I’m still looking at colleges and stuff
because I want to have something to fall back on in case a career with the band doesn’t work
out.” Gerard shrugged.
“What’re you thinking about going to college for?” Mom asked.
“I want to be an artist of some kind.”
“You never told me that, Gerard.” I remarked.
“Really?” Gerard sounded surprised. “I thought I did.”
“Valerie’s thinking of doing the same thing.” Dad said. “Are there any art schools you’re
interested in?”
“Well, I’ve looked at a few but so far I really like the School of Visual Arts in Manhattan.
They have something for everyone there.” Gerard then turned to me. “Valerie, my mom’s
promised me a visit there sometime, and I could ask her if you could come to check the place
out with us if you wanted to.”
“That’d be cool.” I nodded. As much as I hated even thinking about going to college, I
wanted to find a place that I’d have a good time at.
As the night went on, I was happy to see that Gerard was making progress with my family. He
had a number of in-depth conversations with my dad, he was really nice to my mom, and he
didn’t treat my sister as a child but rather a young teenager, which was exactly how she
liked to be treated at the age of eleven. He answered all of the questioned they asked him,
but they weren’t embarrassing or personal like I thought they’d be. He explained what it was
like growing up in New Jersey, his really close bond with Mikey and the various experiences
he had playing in My Chemical Romance. It’s true when they say time flies when you’re having
fun, because all too soon it was time for him to leave.
“My mom wants to meet Valerie soon, so would it be okay with you guys if she came over to my
house for dinner next weekend?” Gerard asked just before he left.
“Of course. It was wonderful to finally meet you, Gerard.” Mom smiled.
“Thanks, it was great to meet you all as well.”
A round of hugs and goodbyes were exchanged before he closed the door behind him. I then
knew it was time for my parents to share with me their opinions about Gerard. “So…what do
you guys think of him?” I asked timidly.
“We like him, Valerie. We like him a lot.” Dad nodded.
Truthfully, that really surprised me. “Seriously? I mean, he doesn’t scare you at all?”
“No, he doesn’t. Gerard’s a good guy, we like him.”
“He’s a nice boy with good intentions, he’s respectful to you, and I don’t think you know
how happy it makes us to see you have a special someone.” Mom added. “We don’t care what he
looks like, because that doesn’t matter in the long run. You don’t have anything to worry
about, because we approve.”
I gave each of them a grateful hug. “You guys don’t know how relieved I am to know that.”
*
“So, you ready to venture into Way territory?” Gerard joked as he and I walked up the
walkway to the front door of his house.
“I guess I am.” I laughed. I knew just how nervous he’d felt when meeting my parents,
because I was now feeling that same way.
“Don’t look so nervous, they’ll like you a lot.” Gerard smiled at me reassuringly. After we
hung up our coats Gerard brought me into their living room where a woman with wavy blonde
hair was sitting and drinking a mug of tea. “Valerie, this is my mom. Mom, I’d like you to
meet my girlfriend Valerie.” Upon hearing that his mom looked up at me with a smile and got
up to hug me properly.
“Hi honey, it’s great to meet you. And please, call me Donna, all of Mikey’s and Gerard’s
friends do. I don’t really like being called Mrs. Way, it makes me feel old and that’s not a
fun feeling.” Donna admitted and I laughed. She was really cool for a mom! The oven beeped
signaling that dinner was ready so we joined Mikey in the kitchen, who was busy pouring
drinks.
“Mikey, has Dad called?” Donna asked.
“Yeah, he’s bringing Grandma over to join us.” Mikey nodded and I saw Gerard’s face light
up. He told me that the two of them were really close to their grandmother, and it turned
out that she had been the one who had taught Gerard how to sing and to draw.
“Okay. Valerie, did Gerard ever tell you that he had the title role in a fourth grade
production of Peter Pan?” Donna asked as we sat down.
“Aw, Mom!” Gerard groaned as Mikey laughed.
“No, I don’t think he did.” I smiled.
“Well, it was at a new school he was going to when we still lived in Belleville. We all
encouraged him to try out, and he got the part.” She got up and returned to the table with a
picture in her hand and gave it to me. “We even have a picture of him in his costume.”
“Aww!” I squealed. The picture showcased a nine-year-old Gerard wearing a green tunic, green
tights and a green hat. “That’s so adorable, Gerard!”
“Mom, put that thing away, please! You’re embarrassing me!”
“Okay, okay.” Donna laughed.
“Aren’t I invited to this little party of yours?” An older woman came into the kitchen
followed by a man who I assumed was Gerard and Mikey’s father.
“Hey, Grandma!” Gerard shared a long hug with her and I smiled. “It’s awesome to see you
again.”
”It’s good to see you too, dear.” She then caught sight of me and looked at Gerard
meaningfully. “Now Gerard, you must tell me who this beautiful young lady is!”
He laughed. “This is my girlfriend Valerie. I invited her over for dinner tonight.”
To my surprise, his grandma gave me a hug. I had to keep myself from tearing up right there,
my grandmother had died when I was fourteen and I’d forgotten what it was like to have a
grandmother. Having Gerard’s grandma there reminded me of what I’d been deprived of since
then.
“It’s wonderful to finally meet you, dear.” She smiled. “Gerard has told me so much about
you that I wanted to make sure I got to meet you sometime.”
“Thank you.” I was surprised but pleased to be told that.
I had a really great time having dinner with Gerard’s family, mostly because of how friendly
they were being towards me. His parents and I got to know each other better, Gerard and
Mikey told us about some new songs they were coming up with for the band, and Gerard and I
shared the story of how we became a couple since we met that first day of school.
When I had to leave, Gerard’s dad gave me a hug and Donna kissed my cheek. But it was what
his grandma said that really got me. She smiled at me kindly and said, “Valerie, you are a
very sweet and beautiful young lady, and you and Gerard are just adorable together. Thank
you for making my oldest grandson so happy.” When she said that, I couldn’t help but give
her a hug of my own. She was such a sweet elderly lady!
“See? I told you they’d like you a lot!” Gerard grinned as we drove back to my house.
“Yeah, yeah, rub it in, why don’t you?” I rolled my eyes but we both laughed.
Operation Meet the Parents was now complete.
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