Categories > Celebrities > Fall Out Boy > Clandestine Industries Presents: disasteRomance
long live the car crash hearts
22 reviewsThe long-awaited Poap reunion has finally arrived.
2Ambiance
Author's Note: Spring break comes to an end tomorrow. I wish I had more inspiration on this fic, but for some reason my brain has been gravitating toward Jack Barakat. lol.
THE BESTEST PEOPLE EVARRR:
Caffrin: Yep. I felt the need to shake things up a bit more. (Yo soy una sucker for the drama.) I'm glad you like it.
Tissamy: The binge drinking killed too many of her brain cells. That's why Soap is so messed up at the moment.
---delilah: Yes. Sorry. lol.
doyleangel: In this case, Soap is still in the denial stage.
easykeys: I've always written Soap as a headstrong person. And at the moment, she's too stubborn to admit she has a problem.
xFallxOutxBoyxFanx: I'm sorry, but Gabe & Soap were getting to cliche for my taste. I had to stirr things up a bit.
alex_-nods-: You can blame it on the a-a-a-a-a-alcohol.
xStabxMyxBackx: Wow. You used a lot of caps and exclamation points. I know that breaking Gabe & Soap up wasn't the nicest thing for me to do, but it had to be done. But remember, this is a DisasteROMANCE, meaning that there's still hope.
tonytay113: Haha. When I read "leaves me wanting more" in your review, the lyrics "keeps me wanting more" from ATL's 'Running From Lions' popped into my head. Now I'm listening to the song and it's putting me in a really good mood, so thank you very much for that ;)
chocolatechortle22: I have a feeling this chapter will make you very happy.
Luveulongtime: Okay, okay. Here's your update. lol.
Onto the unfolding madness...
45: l o n g l i v e t h e c a r c r a s h h e a r t s
+++++
Soap’s POV
“So what’s it gonna be, huh? You want your menorah or a candy cane? Hmm? Christmas or Hanukah?”
“Uh, I’m—”
“Ah, don’t worry about it, buddy. Because in this house, you don’t have to choose. I’d like to introduce to you a little something I call Chrismukkah.”
“Chrismukkah?”
“That’s right. It’s a new holiday, Ryan, and it’s sweepin the nation.”
Peyton wasn’t home and I wasn’t expecting anyone, so when a knock at the door interrupted my O.C. season 1 marathon, I was more than surprised.
“Damn,” I mumbled, noting the time on the kitchen stove. It was 10:14 PM, meaning that it had been almost 7 hours since I started watching. Stiff from my lack of movement, I stretched my arms over my head before answering the door.
“Patrick? Hemmy?” I said, confused as they stood in front of me.
“Hi,” the singer greeted. I stepped aside so they could come in, but he didn’t move.
“Um, actually, I can’t stay long. I don’t want to bore you with the details, but something came up today and I’m supposed to watch Hemmy, and now I can’t, so could you—”
“No problem, Trick,” I said, taking the leash from him.
“You sure?” he skeptically asked.
“Yeah, it’s fine. Peyton’s at work and I have nothing to do. It’d be nice to have some company.”
“Thanks, Soap. I owe you big time,” he said wrapping me in a tight hug.
“Don’t worry about it,” I said as he pulled away.
“Okay, well, I’ve gotta go. Here’s Hem’s stuff.” He set a duffel bag on the inside of my wall. “Thanks, again. I’ll be back in a few hours to pick him up.”
“Alright.”
He kissed my cheek and offered me a grateful smile before heading down the hall.
After closing the door, I squatted down and unclipped Hemmy’s leash. Before I had the chance to get up, he put his paws on my knees and licked my cheek.
“Aww, I missed you, too,” I admitted, planting a kiss on his forehead.
+++++
Hemmy’s POV
As she took a seat on the couch, I eagerly jumped up next to her. Then very gently, I pressed my nose to the side of her stomach.
“Ah, so you noticed my tummy,” she said, smiling. “Rumors are true, Hem. I’m pregnant.”
Though I’d already known it for the past month, I was still surprised when the words left her lips. Seeing is believing, I guess. Still grinning, she scratched the back of my ear and patted her lap. I looked up, wondering if it was really alright being so close.
“Don’t worry, you won’t squish the baby,” she reassured. With that I crawled onto her thighs and snuggled against her stomach.
Turning to the television, I saw that she was watching the O.C. If I wasn’t mistaken, it was the Chrismukkah episode.
“What are you wrapping?” Ryan asked.
“2 Seth Cohen starter packs. We got Death Cab, we got Bright Eyes, we got the Shins, we got Cavalier and Clay, and we’ve got Goonies. It’s not just for kids, Ryan. It’s not. I don’t care what they tell you,”/] the quirky Jewish boy replied.
Caught up in the excitement of Orange County’s teenage residents, I had almost forgotten about the task at hand. Carefully, I hopped down to the floor and made my way to the bag Patrick had left behind. Taking its handles in my mouth, I dragged the Clandestine duffel over to Sophie’s feet.
+++++
Soap’s POV
“Hungry?” I asked, pulling the duffel onto my lap. He shook his head before reclaiming his place beside me. Once I unzipped the bag, he dipped his head inside as if he was searching for something. After a minute or so, he lifted his head. A DVD case was in his mouth.
Clandestine Industries Presents disasteRomance.
My heart skipped a beat as I read the spine. Eyes wide, I took the object from Hemmy.
On the front, the title was written in gold against a black background. Underneath it, a golden bartskull was embossed into the cover. I flipped over to the back, looking for some sort of explanation. There, the words “watch me” were fancily printed in the center.
Unsure of what to think, I shifted my attention from the cryptic message to the dog sitting next to me. He looked up at me with pleading eyes. He was in on this.
Sighing, I looked at the DVD once again. For a few minutes I sat there and debated whether or not I should watch it.
“Curiosity killed the cat…” I thought aloud, while staring at the front cover. “…But I’m not a cat.”
I got up from the couch and walked over to the DVD player. Then after replacing the O.C. with the mystery disk, I took a seat and pressed play.
“Hi Sophie,” Pete said, looking into the camera. “If you’re watching, I’m pretty sure you’re wondering what this is all about…” With a sigh, he continued. “Well, I’m not gonna lie. This is my desperate attempt to win you back. You have every right to turn off your television and throw this DVD out the window right now, but please bear with me for at least the next 30 seconds.
I need you, Sophie. You’re my Sally. You’re my oxygen. You’re my everything.
I’m fully aware that the chances of you forgiving me are a million to one, and that our chances of getting back together are infinity to none, but I needed to at least try.
My time’s almost up, so I’ll end this with one last thing: I love you and our baby with all my heart and nothing in the fucking universe will ever change that…”
The screen faded to black, and the words “Seasons Change, People Don’t” appeared, followed by Pete’s face. This time, however, the footage was 5 or 6 years old, taken right around the time Take This To Your Grave was released.
“In 5 words, how would you describe Pete?” Patrick asked from behind the camera before panning over to me.
“Egotistical, insanely evil, creative mastermind,” I replied, counting the words on my fingers.
“Okay. Pete, in 5 words how would you describe Soap?” Patrick asked, panning the camera over to him once again.
“Funny as fuck, best friend.”
“We’re gonna take over the world someday,” I added.
We high fived each other, then the DVD suddenly cut to footage of Dirty. He was asleep on Pete’s couch. Soon I appeared on the screen, razor in hand.
“Oh, shit. He’s gonna be so pissed off,” Pete said, holding the camera. I quietly laughed, then started shaving Dirty’s eyebrows off. Then after surveying my work, I took out a Sharpie and wrote ‘Sophie & Pete were here’ on his forehead.
“This is what happens when you mess with Wentz and Matsumoto. You get your eyebrows shaved off,” I said with a straight face into the camera.
“I still say we should have lit his pubes on fire.”
“Huh?” Dirty mumbled.
“Oh, shit! He’s waking up!”
This faded out and was quickly replaced by a buzznet interview that was about 2 months old.
“Sophie, in 5 words or less, how would you describe Pete?” Bree asked.
“Umm, that’s a toughie…” I said, slipping my hand into his. “I mean, I could say he’s a ‘prankster who’s awesome in bed,’ but that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Pete’s hilarious, enigmatic, charming, creative, handsome—”
“No I’m not,” he interrupted.
“Oh, shut up, Wentz,” I said, playfully hitting his shoulder. “You’re gorgeous, deal with it. Now as I was saying, he’s handsome, dorky, stubborn, intelligent, and I could go on for another hour like this. But overall, in 5 words, Pete’s ‘my knight in shining sneakers.’”
“Aww,” Bree said, as I planted a kiss on his cheek. “Now, Pete, same question. How would you describe Sophie in 5 words or less?”
“Other than being ‘my favorite partner in crime,’ this girl is the ‘absolute love of my life’,” he said with a huge grin on his face.
This scene transitioned to footage of Pete and I standing on his roof. He was in his board shorts while I was in a bikini.
“Okay, is the camera rolling?” he shouted from the second story.
“Yeah!” Dirty said from adjusting the focus.
“God, Pete, I can’t believe we’re doing this,” I said.
“C’mon, it’ll be fine,” he reassured. “We did this at your parents house, remember?”
“But we weren’t on bikes back then!”
“Just trust me on this one. If anything happens, we can hold Dirty liable.”
“Hey, what?!”
“Nothing, just keep filming!” Pete yelled.
“Whatever, this wasn’t my idea,” he mumbled, zooming in on us.
“Okay, we go on the count of three,” Pete said. “One. Two. Three!”
With that, Pete and I started pedaling as hard as we could, propelling ourselves off the roof.
“HOLY SHIT!” Dirty said as we sailed through the air. Then, with a huge splash, the both of us landed in his pool. Seconds later, we broke the surface of the water.
“That was fucking awesome!” I yelled.
“Told you!” Pete said.
Then of course was a celebratory make out session.
“Guys, is this gonna turn into another edition of porn ninjas?”
Lips still locked, Pete and I flipped him off.
“Wait, is that a yes or a no?”
A reminiscent smile spread across my face as I thought back to that day. The screen went black once again before the words “Photo Op” appeared, along with a picture of our public make out session in Altanta.
“Our first kiss,” Pete narrated. “I know it didn’t occur under the most romantic of situations, but that was the night I fell head over heels for you…”
The screen quickly transitioned to footage Dirty had taken about a week later.
Pete and I were on the bunk area floor, fully clothed, but tangled in a mess of sheets.
“You two sure don’t waste any time,” Andy said while Dirty zoomed in on us.
“See? Toldja so,” Joe said, matter-of-factly.
“Umm, what’s up guys?” I awkwardly asked.
“Your hormone levels, apparently,” Patrick quipped.
Pete and I turned bright red as we pulled ourselves off the floor.
“Oh, this is definitely going on the DVD,” Dirty said before the screen faded to black once again.
The next chapter was titled “Take This TMZ.” It was a slideshow of the pictures we’d used to admit we were a couple on the message boards. In the first one, he had a dorky smile spread across his face while I kissed his cheek. In the next one, we were making ridiculous faces into the camera. Next was one of Pete hugging me from behind.
Hemmy happily barked as the three of us appeared on the screen—he and Pete had sandwiched me with kisses on the cheek. This was followed by the Wentz, Matsumoto, Hemmy totem pole.
As the last picture appeared, a tear slipped down my cheek. Pete and I were forming a heart with our hands. It was taken right after we exchanged our first ‘I love you’s…
Biting my lip, I looked down at Hemmy. “God, I miss him,” I whispered, wiping my eyes. The canine nuzzled against my arm as I fought back oncoming tears.
The sound of obnoxious laughter caused me to look up. On the television, Pete and I were walking hand in hand, fresh from Dirty’s barrage of tests that determined who wore the pants in our relationship. Various splotches of paint covering the both of us served as proof.
“In the garage!” Pete screamed.
“I feel safe!” I yelled just as loud.
“No one cares about my ways!”
“In the garage!”
“Where I belong!”
“NO ONE HEARS ME SING THIS SONG!” we both shouted at the top of our lungs.
“I will never understand those two,” Alex commented as the camera zoomed in on us.
“I doubt that anyone ever will,” Ryan said.
“Yeah, but as far as couples go, Pete and Soap are totally boss,” Joe said. “He’s the cheese to her macaroni.”
“Wow, Trohman. That’s pretty deep,” Nate said.
“I got it from Juno.”
I was less than half an hour into the DVD, but I was already overwhelmed by the memories…
+++++
Pete’s POV
If all our life is but a dream
Fantastic posing greed
Then we should feed our jewelry to the sea
For diamonds do appear to be
Just like broken glass to me
I was almost midnight. As I sat in front of my laptop, listening to the tracks Panic had laid down in the studio, the sound of the doorbell brought my attention to the front of the room. Hitting the pause button, I took my headphones off and got up to answer it.
“S-sophie?” I asked, not sure if I was hallucinating.
“Hi,” she quietly said.
Hemingway scampered inside as I stood there, completely speechless. Although I tried to hide it, my gaze immediately went to her stomach.
We awkwardly stood in the doorway for a couple of seconds before I realized that I hadn’t invited her in. Unable to speak, I stepped aside. Looking down, she stepped through the doorway.
“How are you?” I cautiously asked, still afraid that this was all a figment of my imagination.
“To be honest…” She took a seat on the couch and looked down. “I’ve been a train wreck ever since I got out of the hospital.”
Stunned by her straightforwardness, I didn’t know what to say.
Why did she stop by? Was something wrong with the baby? Did she want to get back together? Did she want to end our relationship? Why does she look so sad? What can I do to fix things? Can things even be fixed?
As these thoughts ran through my head, I silently took a seat across from her. Although it killed me not knowing what her intentions were, I knew that
A) if I said something, it would come out all wrong, and
B) she’d talk when she was ready.
So instead of jumping to conclusions, I looked at her expression and tried to decipher what she was thinking.
Averted eyes and a bitten lip meant nervousness.
Fidgeting with her rings meant that she was planning out what she was going to say.
Feet and knees close together meant that she knew I was staring at her.
After what seemed like an eternity, she spoke up again.
“I miss you, Pete,” she said, glancing up at me.
“I miss you, too,” I quietly replied.
She sighed and leaned forward, resting her elbows onto her knees.
“Do you remember what you said to before our fourth kiss?”
“I said that I didn’t want to hurt you…”
“No, before that,” she said. “It was a line from Mr. & Mrs. Smith.”
I looked up at her with uncertainty, but said it nonetheless.
“I’m a mess and you're a disaster. We’re both liars--”
“But you run,” she continued. “You'll always be running. I say we stay and fight…”
Taking a deep breath, she continued twisting her rings around her fingers.
“Pete, I’m tired of running. For the past two months I’ve been trying to convince myself that I’m better off without you. That I could do this on my own…” she explained. “But it hasn’t worked. At all. Every time I hear a song on the radio, I wonder it you’re listening to the same one. Every time I see a couple that looks remotely happy, I wonder what we’d be up to if we were still together. Every time I feel the baby kick, I wonder if he or she will have your eyes or your smile… I don’t know if things will ever be the same between us, but the fact of the matter is that I’m still in love with you.”
Relief washed over me when those words left her lips. But I knew better than to assume that everything was alright between us.
“So where do we go from here?” I softly asked.
“I guess we start fresh and see where that takes us,” she said, getting up.
“Wait, where are you going?”
“Back to Peyton’s. She’s probably wondering where I am.”
“Oh,” I said, somewhat disheartened. But who was I to complain? Her forgiveness was more than I deserved.
I quietly followed as she headed toward the door.
“Pete?” she asked, turning around.
“Yeah, Soap?”
She took my hands in hers and looked up at me.
“Don’t look so sad.”
“But nobody thinks we’re gonna make it.”
“That’s the start of every great success story,” she said, offering me a smile.
I don’t know how she did it, but Sophie knew the perfect quotes for every occasion.
With that she gave my hands a reassuring squeeze, then headed to her car.
+++++
Although the Gabe/Soap relationship is hanging on by a thread, Pete and Soap are now on the road to recovery.
Sadly, this will probably be the last update for a while since school (as well as hardcore dance practice) starts back up on Monday. Feedback will be CRUCIAL if you want to find out what happens next.
So feel free to click the 'Review Story' link below and make predictions on what will happen next (ie., the sex of the Poap baby, whether or not Soap will realize that she's an alcoholic, etc.), comment on how much you want/don't want Gabe and Sophie to fix things, and or discuss how much you love/hate this story.
In addition to that, I'd like to hear your opinions on the following (even though they have nothing to do with the story):
-BND tour
-what Panic at the Disco will sound like on their next record
-the new Cobra Starship song
-Jack Barakat ;)
-the craziest things you've done over spring break
PS: As if I haven't said it enough, moocow, rawrlittledino, and tissamy are pretty much pwn at writing, so go read their stuff. NOW.
PSS: Don't forget to check out my other fics, 'Press Play' and 'Lasting Impressions' if you haven't already.
PPSS: 1,000,000 cool points will be awarded to whoever can identify where the ending quote of this chapter came from:
“But nobody thinks we’re gonna make it.”
“That’s the start of every great success story.”
THE BESTEST PEOPLE EVARRR:
Caffrin: Yep. I felt the need to shake things up a bit more. (Yo soy una sucker for the drama.) I'm glad you like it.
Tissamy: The binge drinking killed too many of her brain cells. That's why Soap is so messed up at the moment.
---delilah: Yes. Sorry. lol.
doyleangel: In this case, Soap is still in the denial stage.
easykeys: I've always written Soap as a headstrong person. And at the moment, she's too stubborn to admit she has a problem.
xFallxOutxBoyxFanx: I'm sorry, but Gabe & Soap were getting to cliche for my taste. I had to stirr things up a bit.
alex_-nods-: You can blame it on the a-a-a-a-a-alcohol.
xStabxMyxBackx: Wow. You used a lot of caps and exclamation points. I know that breaking Gabe & Soap up wasn't the nicest thing for me to do, but it had to be done. But remember, this is a DisasteROMANCE, meaning that there's still hope.
tonytay113: Haha. When I read "leaves me wanting more" in your review, the lyrics "keeps me wanting more" from ATL's 'Running From Lions' popped into my head. Now I'm listening to the song and it's putting me in a really good mood, so thank you very much for that ;)
chocolatechortle22: I have a feeling this chapter will make you very happy.
Luveulongtime: Okay, okay. Here's your update. lol.
Onto the unfolding madness...
45: l o n g l i v e t h e c a r c r a s h h e a r t s
+++++
Soap’s POV
“So what’s it gonna be, huh? You want your menorah or a candy cane? Hmm? Christmas or Hanukah?”
“Uh, I’m—”
“Ah, don’t worry about it, buddy. Because in this house, you don’t have to choose. I’d like to introduce to you a little something I call Chrismukkah.”
“Chrismukkah?”
“That’s right. It’s a new holiday, Ryan, and it’s sweepin the nation.”
Peyton wasn’t home and I wasn’t expecting anyone, so when a knock at the door interrupted my O.C. season 1 marathon, I was more than surprised.
“Damn,” I mumbled, noting the time on the kitchen stove. It was 10:14 PM, meaning that it had been almost 7 hours since I started watching. Stiff from my lack of movement, I stretched my arms over my head before answering the door.
“Patrick? Hemmy?” I said, confused as they stood in front of me.
“Hi,” the singer greeted. I stepped aside so they could come in, but he didn’t move.
“Um, actually, I can’t stay long. I don’t want to bore you with the details, but something came up today and I’m supposed to watch Hemmy, and now I can’t, so could you—”
“No problem, Trick,” I said, taking the leash from him.
“You sure?” he skeptically asked.
“Yeah, it’s fine. Peyton’s at work and I have nothing to do. It’d be nice to have some company.”
“Thanks, Soap. I owe you big time,” he said wrapping me in a tight hug.
“Don’t worry about it,” I said as he pulled away.
“Okay, well, I’ve gotta go. Here’s Hem’s stuff.” He set a duffel bag on the inside of my wall. “Thanks, again. I’ll be back in a few hours to pick him up.”
“Alright.”
He kissed my cheek and offered me a grateful smile before heading down the hall.
After closing the door, I squatted down and unclipped Hemmy’s leash. Before I had the chance to get up, he put his paws on my knees and licked my cheek.
“Aww, I missed you, too,” I admitted, planting a kiss on his forehead.
+++++
Hemmy’s POV
As she took a seat on the couch, I eagerly jumped up next to her. Then very gently, I pressed my nose to the side of her stomach.
“Ah, so you noticed my tummy,” she said, smiling. “Rumors are true, Hem. I’m pregnant.”
Though I’d already known it for the past month, I was still surprised when the words left her lips. Seeing is believing, I guess. Still grinning, she scratched the back of my ear and patted her lap. I looked up, wondering if it was really alright being so close.
“Don’t worry, you won’t squish the baby,” she reassured. With that I crawled onto her thighs and snuggled against her stomach.
Turning to the television, I saw that she was watching the O.C. If I wasn’t mistaken, it was the Chrismukkah episode.
“What are you wrapping?” Ryan asked.
“2 Seth Cohen starter packs. We got Death Cab, we got Bright Eyes, we got the Shins, we got Cavalier and Clay, and we’ve got Goonies. It’s not just for kids, Ryan. It’s not. I don’t care what they tell you,”/] the quirky Jewish boy replied.
Caught up in the excitement of Orange County’s teenage residents, I had almost forgotten about the task at hand. Carefully, I hopped down to the floor and made my way to the bag Patrick had left behind. Taking its handles in my mouth, I dragged the Clandestine duffel over to Sophie’s feet.
+++++
Soap’s POV
“Hungry?” I asked, pulling the duffel onto my lap. He shook his head before reclaiming his place beside me. Once I unzipped the bag, he dipped his head inside as if he was searching for something. After a minute or so, he lifted his head. A DVD case was in his mouth.
Clandestine Industries Presents disasteRomance.
My heart skipped a beat as I read the spine. Eyes wide, I took the object from Hemmy.
On the front, the title was written in gold against a black background. Underneath it, a golden bartskull was embossed into the cover. I flipped over to the back, looking for some sort of explanation. There, the words “watch me” were fancily printed in the center.
Unsure of what to think, I shifted my attention from the cryptic message to the dog sitting next to me. He looked up at me with pleading eyes. He was in on this.
Sighing, I looked at the DVD once again. For a few minutes I sat there and debated whether or not I should watch it.
“Curiosity killed the cat…” I thought aloud, while staring at the front cover. “…But I’m not a cat.”
I got up from the couch and walked over to the DVD player. Then after replacing the O.C. with the mystery disk, I took a seat and pressed play.
“Hi Sophie,” Pete said, looking into the camera. “If you’re watching, I’m pretty sure you’re wondering what this is all about…” With a sigh, he continued. “Well, I’m not gonna lie. This is my desperate attempt to win you back. You have every right to turn off your television and throw this DVD out the window right now, but please bear with me for at least the next 30 seconds.
I need you, Sophie. You’re my Sally. You’re my oxygen. You’re my everything.
I’m fully aware that the chances of you forgiving me are a million to one, and that our chances of getting back together are infinity to none, but I needed to at least try.
My time’s almost up, so I’ll end this with one last thing: I love you and our baby with all my heart and nothing in the fucking universe will ever change that…”
The screen faded to black, and the words “Seasons Change, People Don’t” appeared, followed by Pete’s face. This time, however, the footage was 5 or 6 years old, taken right around the time Take This To Your Grave was released.
“In 5 words, how would you describe Pete?” Patrick asked from behind the camera before panning over to me.
“Egotistical, insanely evil, creative mastermind,” I replied, counting the words on my fingers.
“Okay. Pete, in 5 words how would you describe Soap?” Patrick asked, panning the camera over to him once again.
“Funny as fuck, best friend.”
“We’re gonna take over the world someday,” I added.
We high fived each other, then the DVD suddenly cut to footage of Dirty. He was asleep on Pete’s couch. Soon I appeared on the screen, razor in hand.
“Oh, shit. He’s gonna be so pissed off,” Pete said, holding the camera. I quietly laughed, then started shaving Dirty’s eyebrows off. Then after surveying my work, I took out a Sharpie and wrote ‘Sophie & Pete were here’ on his forehead.
“This is what happens when you mess with Wentz and Matsumoto. You get your eyebrows shaved off,” I said with a straight face into the camera.
“I still say we should have lit his pubes on fire.”
“Huh?” Dirty mumbled.
“Oh, shit! He’s waking up!”
This faded out and was quickly replaced by a buzznet interview that was about 2 months old.
“Sophie, in 5 words or less, how would you describe Pete?” Bree asked.
“Umm, that’s a toughie…” I said, slipping my hand into his. “I mean, I could say he’s a ‘prankster who’s awesome in bed,’ but that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Pete’s hilarious, enigmatic, charming, creative, handsome—”
“No I’m not,” he interrupted.
“Oh, shut up, Wentz,” I said, playfully hitting his shoulder. “You’re gorgeous, deal with it. Now as I was saying, he’s handsome, dorky, stubborn, intelligent, and I could go on for another hour like this. But overall, in 5 words, Pete’s ‘my knight in shining sneakers.’”
“Aww,” Bree said, as I planted a kiss on his cheek. “Now, Pete, same question. How would you describe Sophie in 5 words or less?”
“Other than being ‘my favorite partner in crime,’ this girl is the ‘absolute love of my life’,” he said with a huge grin on his face.
This scene transitioned to footage of Pete and I standing on his roof. He was in his board shorts while I was in a bikini.
“Okay, is the camera rolling?” he shouted from the second story.
“Yeah!” Dirty said from adjusting the focus.
“God, Pete, I can’t believe we’re doing this,” I said.
“C’mon, it’ll be fine,” he reassured. “We did this at your parents house, remember?”
“But we weren’t on bikes back then!”
“Just trust me on this one. If anything happens, we can hold Dirty liable.”
“Hey, what?!”
“Nothing, just keep filming!” Pete yelled.
“Whatever, this wasn’t my idea,” he mumbled, zooming in on us.
“Okay, we go on the count of three,” Pete said. “One. Two. Three!”
With that, Pete and I started pedaling as hard as we could, propelling ourselves off the roof.
“HOLY SHIT!” Dirty said as we sailed through the air. Then, with a huge splash, the both of us landed in his pool. Seconds later, we broke the surface of the water.
“That was fucking awesome!” I yelled.
“Told you!” Pete said.
Then of course was a celebratory make out session.
“Guys, is this gonna turn into another edition of porn ninjas?”
Lips still locked, Pete and I flipped him off.
“Wait, is that a yes or a no?”
A reminiscent smile spread across my face as I thought back to that day. The screen went black once again before the words “Photo Op” appeared, along with a picture of our public make out session in Altanta.
“Our first kiss,” Pete narrated. “I know it didn’t occur under the most romantic of situations, but that was the night I fell head over heels for you…”
The screen quickly transitioned to footage Dirty had taken about a week later.
Pete and I were on the bunk area floor, fully clothed, but tangled in a mess of sheets.
“You two sure don’t waste any time,” Andy said while Dirty zoomed in on us.
“See? Toldja so,” Joe said, matter-of-factly.
“Umm, what’s up guys?” I awkwardly asked.
“Your hormone levels, apparently,” Patrick quipped.
Pete and I turned bright red as we pulled ourselves off the floor.
“Oh, this is definitely going on the DVD,” Dirty said before the screen faded to black once again.
The next chapter was titled “Take This TMZ.” It was a slideshow of the pictures we’d used to admit we were a couple on the message boards. In the first one, he had a dorky smile spread across his face while I kissed his cheek. In the next one, we were making ridiculous faces into the camera. Next was one of Pete hugging me from behind.
Hemmy happily barked as the three of us appeared on the screen—he and Pete had sandwiched me with kisses on the cheek. This was followed by the Wentz, Matsumoto, Hemmy totem pole.
As the last picture appeared, a tear slipped down my cheek. Pete and I were forming a heart with our hands. It was taken right after we exchanged our first ‘I love you’s…
Biting my lip, I looked down at Hemmy. “God, I miss him,” I whispered, wiping my eyes. The canine nuzzled against my arm as I fought back oncoming tears.
The sound of obnoxious laughter caused me to look up. On the television, Pete and I were walking hand in hand, fresh from Dirty’s barrage of tests that determined who wore the pants in our relationship. Various splotches of paint covering the both of us served as proof.
“In the garage!” Pete screamed.
“I feel safe!” I yelled just as loud.
“No one cares about my ways!”
“In the garage!”
“Where I belong!”
“NO ONE HEARS ME SING THIS SONG!” we both shouted at the top of our lungs.
“I will never understand those two,” Alex commented as the camera zoomed in on us.
“I doubt that anyone ever will,” Ryan said.
“Yeah, but as far as couples go, Pete and Soap are totally boss,” Joe said. “He’s the cheese to her macaroni.”
“Wow, Trohman. That’s pretty deep,” Nate said.
“I got it from Juno.”
I was less than half an hour into the DVD, but I was already overwhelmed by the memories…
+++++
Pete’s POV
If all our life is but a dream
Fantastic posing greed
Then we should feed our jewelry to the sea
For diamonds do appear to be
Just like broken glass to me
I was almost midnight. As I sat in front of my laptop, listening to the tracks Panic had laid down in the studio, the sound of the doorbell brought my attention to the front of the room. Hitting the pause button, I took my headphones off and got up to answer it.
“S-sophie?” I asked, not sure if I was hallucinating.
“Hi,” she quietly said.
Hemingway scampered inside as I stood there, completely speechless. Although I tried to hide it, my gaze immediately went to her stomach.
We awkwardly stood in the doorway for a couple of seconds before I realized that I hadn’t invited her in. Unable to speak, I stepped aside. Looking down, she stepped through the doorway.
“How are you?” I cautiously asked, still afraid that this was all a figment of my imagination.
“To be honest…” She took a seat on the couch and looked down. “I’ve been a train wreck ever since I got out of the hospital.”
Stunned by her straightforwardness, I didn’t know what to say.
Why did she stop by? Was something wrong with the baby? Did she want to get back together? Did she want to end our relationship? Why does she look so sad? What can I do to fix things? Can things even be fixed?
As these thoughts ran through my head, I silently took a seat across from her. Although it killed me not knowing what her intentions were, I knew that
A) if I said something, it would come out all wrong, and
B) she’d talk when she was ready.
So instead of jumping to conclusions, I looked at her expression and tried to decipher what she was thinking.
Averted eyes and a bitten lip meant nervousness.
Fidgeting with her rings meant that she was planning out what she was going to say.
Feet and knees close together meant that she knew I was staring at her.
After what seemed like an eternity, she spoke up again.
“I miss you, Pete,” she said, glancing up at me.
“I miss you, too,” I quietly replied.
She sighed and leaned forward, resting her elbows onto her knees.
“Do you remember what you said to before our fourth kiss?”
“I said that I didn’t want to hurt you…”
“No, before that,” she said. “It was a line from Mr. & Mrs. Smith.”
I looked up at her with uncertainty, but said it nonetheless.
“I’m a mess and you're a disaster. We’re both liars--”
“But you run,” she continued. “You'll always be running. I say we stay and fight…”
Taking a deep breath, she continued twisting her rings around her fingers.
“Pete, I’m tired of running. For the past two months I’ve been trying to convince myself that I’m better off without you. That I could do this on my own…” she explained. “But it hasn’t worked. At all. Every time I hear a song on the radio, I wonder it you’re listening to the same one. Every time I see a couple that looks remotely happy, I wonder what we’d be up to if we were still together. Every time I feel the baby kick, I wonder if he or she will have your eyes or your smile… I don’t know if things will ever be the same between us, but the fact of the matter is that I’m still in love with you.”
Relief washed over me when those words left her lips. But I knew better than to assume that everything was alright between us.
“So where do we go from here?” I softly asked.
“I guess we start fresh and see where that takes us,” she said, getting up.
“Wait, where are you going?”
“Back to Peyton’s. She’s probably wondering where I am.”
“Oh,” I said, somewhat disheartened. But who was I to complain? Her forgiveness was more than I deserved.
I quietly followed as she headed toward the door.
“Pete?” she asked, turning around.
“Yeah, Soap?”
She took my hands in hers and looked up at me.
“Don’t look so sad.”
“But nobody thinks we’re gonna make it.”
“That’s the start of every great success story,” she said, offering me a smile.
I don’t know how she did it, but Sophie knew the perfect quotes for every occasion.
With that she gave my hands a reassuring squeeze, then headed to her car.
+++++
Although the Gabe/Soap relationship is hanging on by a thread, Pete and Soap are now on the road to recovery.
Sadly, this will probably be the last update for a while since school (as well as hardcore dance practice) starts back up on Monday. Feedback will be CRUCIAL if you want to find out what happens next.
So feel free to click the 'Review Story' link below and make predictions on what will happen next (ie., the sex of the Poap baby, whether or not Soap will realize that she's an alcoholic, etc.), comment on how much you want/don't want Gabe and Sophie to fix things, and or discuss how much you love/hate this story.
In addition to that, I'd like to hear your opinions on the following (even though they have nothing to do with the story):
-BND tour
-what Panic at the Disco will sound like on their next record
-the new Cobra Starship song
-Jack Barakat ;)
-the craziest things you've done over spring break
PS: As if I haven't said it enough, moocow, rawrlittledino, and tissamy are pretty much pwn at writing, so go read their stuff. NOW.
PSS: Don't forget to check out my other fics, 'Press Play' and 'Lasting Impressions' if you haven't already.
PPSS: 1,000,000 cool points will be awarded to whoever can identify where the ending quote of this chapter came from:
“But nobody thinks we’re gonna make it.”
“That’s the start of every great success story.”
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