FicWad

There is a very mild warning of violence in this chapter

Gerard’s POV

My thumbs ache after hours of playing video games non-stop. The car journey back home had been shrouded in an awkward silence. Mikey’s eyes had been on me the whole way home. He knew I hadn’t told the whole truth, but I had made a promise; a promise that I would keep until the very day I die. But the atmosphere soon changed, once we stepped through the front door. Mikey had dashed back up to his room, while I had gone to make coffee for the both of us and as a way of an apology. After by-passing mom and dad, and retreating back up to Mikey’s room, I’d found him debating over which game to play first, but soon diverted his attention to the hot beverages I had in my hands. We had sat and played for hours, and we didn’t even take our eyes of the screen when mom poked her head round the door to announce that dinner was ready.

Sighing, I lay back in my familiar comfort of my own bed, the bed sheets engulfing me in warmth, as my bed side light emits a dull light, casting long shadows throughout the room. My sketchbook now lies on top of my desk, along with the rest of my art supplies and a few comic books. I glance at my clock; 10:59pm the red digits read. I turn and lay on my side, staring ahead at a blank space on the wall. God, he must be so lonely in that house; so cold. Two years, he’s stayed in that house for two years. I can’t understand how a mother can be so cruel to her own flesh and blood, all because he is ‘different’ in her eyes. The heartache he must have gone through; all the pain . . . . . . . it makes my heart twist and ache, remembering his eyes, filled with tears of hurt. Rolling back onto my back, I stare at the ceiling for a second, before letting my eyes slip shut. So small and defenceless, yet so brave and strong. I wish I could do something . . . .

Frank’s POV

The late afternoon sun warmed my back, as I sat cross legged on my bed, math book perched on my lap, pencil tapping against the book, as I read the math equation over and over again. The Bouncing Souls were playing quietly through my small stereo system my dad had got me long ago.

Footsteps; her footsteps echo as they draw nearer and nearer

I glance up at my door that is slightly ajar. Her shadow appears, before my door is pushed open gently. I watch as my mother stands there. Her eyes dart around my room, her face one of disgust. Her eyes stop upon my stereo. My pencil tapping stops, as I watch her eyes snap to me

“What are you doing Franklin?”

My eye twitches slightly. I hate that name; Franklin. My name is Frank

“Just doing my math homework.”

Marching over, she snatches my math book from my lap. I flinch backwards. Her eyes scan through my book, before she stares at me; her eyes are different. They used to be so warm, full of love and care. Now they are cold, hard and uncaring as she glares at me

“Hopeless,” she mutters. Before I can even blink, she has ripped out the page of equations that I had been doing

“What are you doing?” I ask as she screws the paper up

“Hopeless! They are all wrong!” She throws the piece of paper at my bin, before she turns to my stereo system. Her nose wrinkles in distaste at the music

“You’ll never get anything right with that garbage blaring out, polluting your mind.” She stomps over, unplugging the stereo system, before taking the CD out and breaking it in half. I stare in horror at my mother who turns to face me

“Mom, please! I’m trying!” I cry out

“Trying?! Trying’s not good enough!” she shouts. I flinch backwards as she advances forwards

“Please!” I cry out as she grips hold of my arm tightly, brandishing the book in my face

“Trying gets you nowhere Franklin!” she shouts again

“But you know I’ve never been that good at math!” I plead. Her grip on my arm tightens, before she swings my math book at my head, a sudden shock of pain jolts through my skull. I can feel the tears forming in my eyes

“Mom, PLEASE!”

“You’ve never been good at anything! Just like your pathetic excuse of a father!”

“He’s not pathetic!” I argue back. I shout out in pain as she strikes me with my book once again

“At least he knew how to love and care about someone, unlike you, you’re just a heartless bitch!” I scream

Smack

My head snaps violently to the right, my cheek stings, a few tears escape my eyes. I look back round slowly, her hand still raised after slapping me. Her eyes were dangerous

“I brought you into this world, not him! I raised you right, but he ruined everything.”

“He didn’t ruin anything, if anything; he made me a better person. A much better person than you are,” I whisper

Slap

I gasp out as the sting intensify in my left cheek. Within the next second, my mother has yanked me to my feet and dragging me down the stairs

No

I struggle as I try to break free of her grip, but she only hits me again as I try to resist. Through the kitchen and stop at a door. She tugs the door open, before giving me a sharp push, tripping and falling down the stairs, only adding to the bruises I have already gained from today’s beating at school. I land with a hard thump crying out in pain, the tears falling down my face. I glance up towards the doorway

Whack

My math book collides with my shoulder, before hitting the ground

“You will stay here, until you have learnt your lesson, you worthless, piece of scum.”

“No, mom, please! I’m-” but it’s too late. The door slams shut, the darkness shrouds around me, as the familiar click of a lock echoes out into the darkness



“LET ME OUT!” I scream, jolting upwards. My guitar clatters to the floor, my body drenched in a cold sweat, trembling violently as tears pool in my eyes, before slowly escape. My chest heaves as I try to catch my breath. Light dances around the room elegantly. I’m safe; I’m away from that monster. She cannot hurt me anymore, it was just a nightmare. I choke out on a sob, as I peer around the room. I pick my guitar and cradle it to my chest. If only my guitar could hug me back; Gerard. I squeeze my eyes shut tight, remembering the warm feeling of his embrace.

If only . . . .

Gerard’s POV

Pain filled eyes, hazel eyes shining bright, filled with tears. A musky, earth like scent clings to his clothes and skin as his body shakes and trembles. Hair smells of grease, but I could care less, as heart-wrenching sobs break free from his chest

“Pssssst.”

Why is everything shaking??

“Gerard,” a hushed voice whispers nearby

Groaning, I try and roll over onto my side, pulling my covers higher and tighter around me

“Gerard!” the voices hisses. The shaking doesn’t stop, in fact gets a little more violent

“Go away,” I mumble out, keeping my eyes shut tight. An exasperated sigh as the shaking stops

“AH! FUCKING HELL!” I groan, sitting up in bed, my already sore head, throbbing again, having being hit once again. I glance around to see Mikey stood next to my bed, arms crossed

“GERARD ARTHUR WAY! WATCH YOUR LANGUAGE!” Mikey chuckles as I rub the back of my head

“What do you want?” I hiss at him, as I lay back down again. My brother rolls his eyes at me

“It’s time to get up,” Mikey says, yanking the cover off me. I scowl back at him

“Why? What time is it?” I groan in response, making to snatch my covers back

“Nearly half eleven,” Mikey says dropping my covers on the ground and walking away, towards my wardrobe. I stare at him, and watch as he opens my wardrobe door and peers inside

“So, why’d you wake me up?” I ask, rubbing my eyes

“Because, we’re going to meet up with Ray and Bob,” Mikey shrugs, while he begins sifting through my clothes. I scramble for my covers and quickly throw them over me, just as the cool air begins to nip at my skin

“And, we’re going to see Billie play tonight, remember?” Mikey turns and looks at me, eyebrow raised

“Yeah, I remember,” I mumble. Mikey turns back to my wardrobe and continues his search for clothes

“Are you ok?” I look over at Mikey, who is watching me, clothes clutched tightly in his hands

“How hard did I hit you,” Mikey chuckles, before walking over and dumping the clothes on my bed. I scowl at him in reply

“Seriously though, are you ok? You’ve been kind of quiet, ever since we got back from that house.”

“I’m fine, Mikey, honestly,” I sigh and then smile at him. Mikey nods his head

“There’s coffee, in the kitchen.”

“Thanks,” I smile. Mikey nods his head again, before disappearing out of my room, closing the door behind him. Sighing, I flop back down on my bed, before kicking my covers off and proceeding to get up and dressed

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mikey’s POV

Walking a few paces behind, I watched as Gerard chatted quietly with Ray, while Bob walked a few paces ahead of them. I know Gerard is keeping something quiet; I’ve known him my whole life. I know when he is hiding something from me. His eyes look a little distant, when you talk to him. Whenever he speaks, there’s that slight hint of uncertainty, and when he smiles, the light doesn’t go all the way to his eyes. He used to hide a lot of things when we were in school; his feelings and emotions, he would become slightly distant, yet he was still there, my big brother, looking out for me, even if he wasn’t ok in himself

“God, could you guys walk any slower?” Bob asks, spinning around and facing us

“Someone’s hungry,” Gerard chuckled

“That’s why you should always eat breakfast Bob,” Ray said

“Whatever, just hurry up,” Bob turned away, walking ahead. Ray and Gerard chuckled away

“Hey Mikey! You still back there?” Ray asks, turning around

“Of course I am, puff-head,” I say, walking past as Ray scowls at me. Gerard laughs

“No need for the name calling Mickey-Mouse,” Ray taunts

“Dick,” I mumble under my breath

“Are you ok Mikey?” Gerard asks, catching up with me

“I’m fine,” I smile. Gerard stares at me for a second that flicker of uncertainty glimmers through his eyes, along with another swirl of mixed emotions

“Come on, we better get a move on, before Bob gets grumpier from the lack of food,” Gerard says, making me laugh. I follow them further down the street, watching Bob turn into a diner. Following suit, Bob had wasted no time and was already sat at a table, calling one of the waitresses over. She sauntered over to the table, a rather bored expression on her face, as I sat down next to Gerard, while Ray sat next to Bob

“Hi! And welcome to the diner,” the girls voice was full of fake enthusiasm, as a fake smile graced her heavily painted face. Picking up a menu, I scanned the various options and pictures

“Yeah yeah, I’ll have a beef burger, with extra fries and a coke,” Bob said, placing his hands on the table

“Do you want salad with that?” the girl asked

“Do I look like a rabbit?” Bob replied. The table jolted, as Bob jumped in his seat

“The fuck was that for?” Bob hissed at Ray

“No need to be rude!” Ray hissed back. I glanced at Gerard, who had his face buried in the menu, his shoulder shaking with silent laughter. The girl looked very unimpressed

“What about you?” the girl snapped at Ray

“Uh, I’ll have a chilli dog, with a salad, and a milkshake,” Ray mumbled, while glaring at Bob, who glared right back

“Strawberry or chocolate?” she asked

“Strawberry.” Her pencil scribbled across the paper, before she peered at me

“I’ll have a beef burger and curly fries.”

“Anything to drink?”

“Coke please,” I say tossing the menu back into it’s holder

“And what can I get you?” she asked turning to Gerard

“Um curly fries and a chicken burger, and a coke.” She nodded, and walked away, but not without glaring at Bob

“Jesus, what was with the attitude?” Gerard asked chuckling. Bob shrugged

“Man, I still don’t see the appeal in girls looking like clowns,” Ray mumbled as another waitress walked past

“Maybe it’s because they look like a blow up doll,” Bob muttered. I chuckled along with Gerard

“Like I’ve said before, I just don’t see the appeal in them at all,” Gerard said lowering his voice right at the end

“Here are your drinks,” the waitress said, wondering back over, placing our drinks down in front of us, making sure to slam Bob’s down on the table

“So, tonight should be good,” Ray smiled. Bob sat tapping his fingers on the table

“I’ll say, I hear that they’re really good,” I chip in. Bob sighs impatiently, earning him another kick under the table

“You know, if you keep doing that, I’m going to have no shin bone left,” Bob stated angrily at Ray. Ray simply rolled his eyes

“And I thought you were supposed to be the manly one of the group,” Ray mumbles

The table shifts again, the glasses clattering slightly, as Ray yelps out in pain and a satisfied smirk spreads across his face

“Was that really necessary?” Gerard asked, picking up his drink with a slight frown on his face

“He started it,” Bob pointed at Ray moodily. Gerard shook his head, while taking a sip of his drink. I watched as he put it down and then sat and stared off into the diner, ignoring Bob and Ray’s bickering. He’s defiantly hiding something, I just wish I knew what.

After about ten minutes, the waitress wondered over, carrying plates full of food. Remembering who had ordered what, she placed the plates down, gave another fake smile, before walking off

“Finally,” Bob muttered, sitting upright and digging into his fries

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Gerard’s POV

The last couple of hours had passed by slowly, with Bob becoming a lot less grumpier after having some food. We had gone back to Bob’s for a little while afterwards too, before it eventually fell dark outside, meaning it was time to go to Green Day’s gig. Bob had decided that he would drive, considering Ray had the day before. The street lamps were flickering out on the streets, young youths out, roaming the streets, with the odd character lingering close by to the alleyways. Bob turned down into a street before parking and clambering out of the car. It didn’t take long of wondering around to find out where the small club was. It was relatively crowded inside, mostly teenagers crowding round the merchandise stall, some brandishing money

“Alicia must be amongst that lot,” Mikey stated.

Sticking close together, we clung onto one another, while Bob pushed his way through the crowds, earning some angry grunts and shouts in the process. Suddenly, there was a series of squeals and screams. Bob pulled us through to the front of the merchandise stall, only to find the reason for the many squealing girls. Billie stood close to Alicia, who was now clutching four tickets in her hand. Ray stumbled forward, as another fan tried to shove their way through

“Hey!” Billie called cheerily spotting the four of us. Alicia smiled brightly at Mikey, who began to blush

“Glad you guys could make it,” Billie smiled more

“Wouldn’t miss this! That’s for sure!” Ray called back. Billie chuckled, as more girls squealed loudly

“Alicia has your tickets, I better escape before I get torn to pieces,” and with that, Billie took off, with a fair few girls following after him. Alicia shook her head, before turning to us and handing the tickets over, which Mikey took hold of, smiling at her

“I’d get in there now, get a good spot while you can,” Alicia said

“Thanks,” Mikey smiled back.

She waved a little, before Bob began to drag us back through the crowd and over to the doors. A tall, muscular looking guy stood by the door, snatching the tickets from Mikey’s hands. With a simple nod, the tickets were handed back, and we made our way inside. There were a few people already lingering around, drinks in hand. The lights were dim, and the air was already humid and warm

“Who wants a drink?” Bob asks

“I do,” I state, and follow Bob away from Mikey and Ray, over to the very small bar area, serving drinks

“Do you think your brother will ask Alicia out?” Bob asks

“I hope he does,” I say as the bar tender wonders over

“Two beers,” Bob says and the bar tender nods

“I mean, he likes her and she likes him, so I hope he does,” I say, glancing around to see more people filtering in

“Well if he doesn’t, I’m sure she will,” Bob chuckled as the bar tender returned with the two beers

“Thanks.” Bob and I each hand over money, before returning back to Ray and Mikey who had got themselves near the front. More people began to file into the room, the level of chatter rising

“Hey,” came a voice. We turned to see Christa standing next to Ray smiling. I glanced at Bob who smirked

“Oh, uh h-hi Christa,” Ray smiles, scratching the back of his neck

“I didn’t know you were going to be here tonight,” she smiles at Ray

“Well uh, we got invited, by Tré.”

“Really? No way!” Christa chuckles. I roll my eyes and turn my attention away from the two, as they begin to chat together

“I swear if those two aren’t kissing by the end of the night, I will cut Ray’s ‘fro off,” Mikey states, making Bob laugh

“Could say the same about you Way, you and Alicia,” Bob teases. Mikey shoves Bob playfully, earning another chuckle from Bob

The lights go dark, and the room falls quiet, excited whispers sounding out in the room. Suddenly, Tré run’s out, running around the drum kit, making me laugh and a few others laugh too. Suddenly a loud gitar rift echoes through the room, the crowd emitting cheers and screams. Tré clambers around behind his drum kit, and sits, twirling his drumsticks pulling funny faces, while Billie walks out laughing, Mike and Jason following behind

“Hey NEW JERSEY!” Billie screams out into the microphone. The crowd screams and jeers even more

“Are you guys ready to rock?” he asks. More cheers and screams

“I said, ARE YOU GUYS READY TO ROCK TONIGHT?” Billie shouts. The screams become louder, almost deafening, as Mikey and Bob cheer along with the crowd. The familiar chords of Welcome To Paradise begin to play

“WE ARE GREEN DAY! AND THIS IS WELCOME TO PARADISE!” I cheer along this time, as the guitar riffs, rip through the building, the drums beating out a rhythm that is loud and fast. I smile as people around me begin to jump about, while Billie’s voice sounds out through the microphone, the lyrics familiar and welcoming. But I can’t help but to feel, a feeling that somewhere, in this room, that I am being watched.



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OK - so I was meant to post this Christmas Eve, so I'm a day late, sorry!! Hopefully it's a bit longer than the last chapter though :-) and I would just like to say Happy Christmas to everyone, and that I hope you all got what you wanted for Christmas!! I might be posting the next chapter on New Years Eve, if not New Years Day, I shall see what happens!!