Archive of Our Own

September 3rd, 2004

Mikey's brows furrowed as he stretched and yawned. He turned over, a silent but content expression on his face. He cracked his eye open, wondering why his alarm hadn't buzzed yet. His heart jumped out of his chest when he realized how light it was outside. He quickly turned over to see what was wrong with the alarm, just to see it was off, completely off. His head snapped to the outlet where Kitty Joe Armstrong was laying and playing with the cord of the alarm. 

"SHIT!" He yelled, jumping up from his bed and hissing incoherent things as he ripped his pajama pants off and put his nice, ironed pants on and slipped on his belt, fumbling the buckle as he ran down the hallways to Gerard's room. He burst the door open, finally buckling his belt. 

"Gerard, wake up!" He shook him, causing Gerard to wave a handout, pushing Mikey's face away.

"Wake up, we overslept!!" He babbled behind a hand and a squished cheek. 

To these words, Gerard's eyes shot open and he threw the cover off of himself, the covers landing over Mikey. As Mikey struggled to get out of the tangle of blankets, Gerard peeled off his shirt and threw his button up on. Once Mikey finally got out of the blanket trap, he ran out to finish getting ready.

Gerard rummaged through his closet just to find his long wrinkly shirt and blazer. He threw them both on in a flash, picking up a tie and not even bothering to tie it the right way. He ties it in a bow. Like the way you tie your shoelaces...

Once as ready as one can be, being Gerard, he runs out the bedroom, almost slipping down the hallway before turning to his right. He tries to open the door to the bathroom but it just jingles. It was locked. He banged on the door with his fist in frustration.

"Mikey!! Get the hell out of there I have to brush my fucking teeth!!!" He yelled through the crack in the door.

"IM TAKING A FUCKING SHIT!!!" Mikey yelled back at him. He was getting impatient. He leaned on the door, tapping his foot and grumbling. He banged on the door again until suddenly he heard the flush go off. He took a big deep breath of relief.

Mikey opens the door and stands to the side, motioning for Gerard to get in. "Ladies first."

Gerard was so mad he was practically steaming. He glared at him. "You didn't even wash your hands! At least a lady would wash her hands!!" He jerked his head at him sarcastically.

Mikey huffed and ran away to finish getting ready in his room. Out of both the Way siblings, Mikey typically took the longest to get ready. He was the more-- put together brother.

Gerard grabbed the tube of toothpaste and squirted it into his mouth, swishing it around like mouthwash. After about ten seconds of doing this, he spit it out into the sink, the toothpaste barely dissolved, leaving the sink all gunky.

Gerard ran down the hallway back to his room. Upon arriving, he kicked his boots on, taking a deep breath before yelling, "Mikey, are you ready!?" 

Mikey seemed to have, like, teleported right outside Gerard's room. "Let's go." He said, shrugging his backpack on.

They sprinted down the road, stopping a few cars from hitting them on the way. Gerard checked his watch and palmed at her face. "How did we oversleep!?" He said in between pants.

"Kitty Joe Armstrong unplugged my alarm!" Mikey groaned out in despair, tugging at his face as Gerard sighed in frustration.

After about ten minutes, they got to the hellhole that had been waiting for them.

Gerard opened the door to the entrance letting Mikey walk in before him. They scurried over to their lockers. Gerard opened his locker, putting his books and necessities in there before shutting it and running to chemistry. He flicked the back of Mikey's head "Good luck!"

Just as Mikey opened his own locker, a boy with black hair, a lip piercing, and gauged ears falls out and yells, "BOO!"

Mikey screamed as he fell on his ass, his glasses falling off. When he put them back on, he realized exactly who was scaring him. It was Frank. 

"Why are you in my locker!?" He said, adjusting his glasses, mouth parting as he breathed heavily, chest moving up and down in a balanced motion.

Frank stared at him in complete silence before bursting out into obnoxious laughter. "To scare you, duh?"

Frank held out a hand for Mikey to balance himself on. "You were so desperate to scare me you missed like an hour or two of class...?"  He said, grabbing the boy's hand to get off the floor. He brushes his pants and butt to get off whatever gunk was on the floor.

"Pretty much." Frank admitted, a sly grin played across his face. "We do have the next same class though, so I guess I'll show up for this one." He said as they began to walk down the hall.

"So, why are you late?" Frank added, turning to look at Mikey as they walked. As they continued walking, Frank wondered what could’ve been the case of them being late this time. Was it that Gerard was just too tired to even get out of bed? Was it that Mikey lost his glasses again? There was always a world of possibilities with the Way brothers.

Mikey stood silent for a moment before responding, "Kitty Joe Armstrong unplugged my alarm and so it didn't ring and me and Gerard fell asleep." He said in defeat.

Gerard opened the door to the chemistry lab. She wasn't expecting the door to let out a loud obnoxious croak that announced to the whole class he was late.

Immediately, everyone turned to him, including Ray. At least Ray was in his class. He kept his head down as he attempted to creep to the back of the class where Ray was before a loud voice announced his name at the front of the class. He spun around, bracing for impact. 

"Gerard Way? Are you Gerard Way?" The teacher asked. Gerard just nodded. He wasn’t planning to be too much trouble in this class, after all, he had math and history to goof off in.

"I am Ms. Wiliams. Why are you late on the first day of class? Not very responsible, are we, Mr. Way?" She emphasized as she raised an eyebrow. "Go sit down."

Gerard finally let go of the breath that caught in his throat as she sped to Ray's desk and sat right by him. "Dude, first day and the teacher is already on my ass!" He hissed.

Ray huffed. "Why are you even late? Also, what’s wrong with your tie..." He mumbled as he pulled Gerard in by his collar to fix it. He untied it and promptly began tying it the way it should've been in the first place.

Gerard gazed at Ray's hands as he meticulously fixed the tie. He swallowed hard before responding, "Kitty Joe Armstrong unplugged Mikey's alarm..." He spoke reluctantly as Ray pulled away from Gerard. He might've stared at Ray even more reluctantly due to the loss of weight around his neck.

"What are we learning right now?" Gerard whispered and leaned in. To this, Ray leaned in as well. Their faces were inches away from each other, and as always, Ray kept the eye contact between the two.

Gerard was beginning to think he had a genuine staring problem. "We're learning about uhm..." He paused, "Molecules...?"

Gerard sighed and put his head down, hitting the table with a light "thunk!" noise. Of course he didn't know. Ray stifled a laugh before going on to play with his crayons and curls. He was like a five-year-old when it came to classes he didn't like. He had no intention of paying attention to or even getting his work done in them.

As Ray continued playing with his curls, his eyes darted around the classroom, seeing if there was anyone in the class he could play around with. There was one guy who just so happened to be looking at him-- or, in his direction. The gears in his head began to shift until he picked up a tan colored crayon, holding it up to his mouth and licking it seductively, the guy’s eye's widening until Ray bit into it aggressively.

Mikey and Frank turned the knob, quietly entering their history class before a loud "Ah, ah, ah," was heard from the front of the class. A pale old guy with piercing blue eyes raised a finger before motioning them to come over. 

In a whisper he asked them what their names were. Once Getting their first names, he held out his hand for a handshake. To this, Frank hesitantly shook it. "I am Mike Dirnt, also known as Mr. Dirnt. Not Dirt. Dirnt." Once Frank shook his hand, Mr. Dirnt told them to walk over to the chalkboard.

"So now, tell us your full names and why you’re late on the first day of school." He might as well gone a planet over to have said this. He was being so loud you might've even heard it from Mars. What an intimidating and passive-aggressive guy.

Mikey stared at Frank, his eyes pleading for him to do something. He felt like he could hide behind the glare of his glasses.

Frank gazed at Mikey with an understanding look. He stood there for a moment before the light switch in his head clicked. He chuckled at the thought and began to walk to the first desk he saw.

He slammed his foot onto it and stared off into the distance as if he were a noble knight. Kind of like his character in D&D.

"I am Frank Iero the 1st, and I had some important duties to attend to, for that is why I could not grace you with my presence." He spoke, using the weirdest Britain accent that somehow turned Aussie halfway through, causing Mikey to giggle under his breath. "But now that I--" He yelped before slamming into the ground. The kid sitting at the desk he stood on seemed to be a snobby hockey kid. He crossed his arms, pretending he wasn't the one who caused Frank to hit his head on the ground. Frank huffed and walked to an empty desk, plopping himself down as people laughed and mustered insults under their breaths.

Mr. Dirnt announced to the class, "Alright settle down, settle down class." He spoke, completely ignoring the fact that Frank just body slammed onto the floor. He turned to Mikey, motioning that it was his turn.

Mikey swallowed hard, fiddling with this tie before opening his mouth to say something. He cleared his throat. "My name is Mikey. Mikey Way." Even though there was small commotion throughout when Mikey was presenting, it seemed to have fallen silent when he said his full name. 

Mr. Dirnt raised an eyebrow. "Way? You wouldn't happen to be related to a 'Gerard Way'? Would you...?"

Mikey avoided eye contact before responding. "Uhm... Yes, that’s my older brother." 

Mr. Dirnt stared at him and couldn’t help but feel bad for the kid. Mikey continued to speak, "Uhm, my cat, Kitty Joe Armstrong unplugged my alarm and so I overslept..." He admitted before being shooed back to his seat. Soon after, Mr. Dirnt went back to teaching about the Roman Empire.

Gerard jumped up, a sharp inhale coming out of his lips. The bell signaling it was lunch time rang in his ears. He looked over at Ray to see him already packing up. Ray seemed to be on top of it today. Besides doing his work in science. In all honesty, he always seemed to be. He lifted his arms, stretching out and letting out a small whine like a cat, his nose scrunching up. He and Ray walked out of class.

First time in the hallway since last year. He prayed she wouldn't see them. As he walked alongside Ray, he truly thought it maybe would be different, but that thought was swatted away like a fly when he heard laughing and teasing behind them. He turned his head around discreetly, trying to find out if she and Ray were the cause of their humor. He sighed and looked at the floor, his brows knitting together.

"What's wrong?" Ray whispered, leaning down a little to get on Gerard’s level. He was pretty tall, and the way Gerard was very short and stubby didn’t help.

Gerard gazed at him, shaking his head. "It's nothing." He said, picking up the pace. To this, Ray followed as chatter picked up behind them, faint words like "They're running away!!" echoing across the hall.

Upon looking back again, she realized it was a group of hockey players and their stupid cheerleader girlfriends. Ray looked back as well, staring them down menacingly. Gerard then stopped dead in his tracks, the kids behind them almost crashing into him.

"Yeah, you keep laughing, and you'll see what happens!!" He snapped before running away, pulling Ray by the sleeve, a small yelp coming from him as he flew with Gerard.

They quickly exited the school, walking to the outside lunch area, reclaiming the spot they've used for the last two years. Gerard and Ray plopped down onto the cold concrete, feeling the warmth of the sun on their face. They both sighed, though they didn't know if it was relief for escaping or anguish for what’s about to come. Gerard scanned across the plain of high schoolers, trying to find a freshman with glasses and another freshman with a lip piercing and black hair. He chewed on his lip. Where could they be? Both him and Ray told them to come here for lunch.

As Gerard was about to lose all hope about them showing up, there they appeared, making a straight beeline towards the juniors. His face lit up seeing the two, though they didn't look too happy. Both Ray and Gerard exchanged a look. It seems like they got picked on.

Frank and Mikey sat down and nodded to them with a puff. Gerard’s lips pressed together before responding to the gesture. "So? How was your first class?" He questioned, tapping his toes on the concrete.

Mikey and Frank turned to the older boys, sighing before Mikey spoke up. "They pushed him off a desk and then threw pencils at us in the halls on the way here." He grumbled, pointing a thumb to Frank, rubbing his head.

Stunned by how blunt and frustrated Mikey’s response was, Gerard tensed up. "Okay... So I’m guessing not great...?" Illi commented as Ray gave them a solemn look. Ray had horrible puppy dog eyes. He moved up to Frank and Mikey, grabbed their shoulders and looked them in their eyes. 

"They'll only continue doing that if you let them." He spoke like the wisest man there ever was. He was honestly just taking Gerard's advice-- if you could even call it advice. It was just snarky comments against everyone who’s ever done anything wrong to them.

To this, Frank and Mikey nodded and Ray went to sit back down in the middle of everyone. They sat in silence for a few moments, and just as Ray was going to speak up, he got a piece of bread to the face.

Everyone in the group looked up from their spots. Then, it was like it was raining food. Bread rolls were being thrown at them, pieces of celery and carrots flying past like they had wings. A hotdog hit Gerard right in the nose. Pigs really do fly. Gerard wiped his nose and just shook his head as Frank removed a carrot from his hair and Mikey, a piece of celery from his glasses.

They heard the hysterical laughing from the group throwing food. 'It really wasn't that funny, but go on, keep laughing at people like they're zoo animals,' Gerard thought to himself as he shook his head in defeat.

The rest turned to Gerard, as if she was the group leader or something-- and of course, to this, Gerard had no response. He just sat there and fiddled with his collar. The whole standing up for themselves thing was a great big battle of whether they'll succeed and won't get picked on, which is most unlikely, or failing, and getting picked on even more.

As they sat there in silence for a few moments, hearing the kids continue to laugh, Gerard began to sweat. He had to do something. He was so frustrated with herself and her whole being. He posed himself as a wolf, when in reality, he was of the same flock of sheep he promised himself to lead.

He rubbed his eyes, sighing. He felt his stomach turn into knots. Why couldn’t he do anything to ever defend himself? Or his friends? He was a disappointment and everyone around him knew it. He blinked a few times before finally being pulled down to earth, picking up the hockey player’s tray and dumping it on one of the hockey players' head, warm mashed potatoes falling down his forehead as he flicked off corn. How did he even get there? Why did he do that? He questioned, but in little time, he felt relief. All that fear he had felt was gone in an instant.

He felt some type of closure. Like a weight off his shoulders.

The kid looked up at Gerard like he was about to pounce on him like a leopard. Pure wrath in his eyes as he gripped the table, his nails digging into it with a squeak. There was no mistake, he couldn't turn back. Gerard just made himself the most targeted guy at school once again. He bit his lip and stuck up both his middle fingers, making a run for it. The guy was asking for it, anyways.

Ray, Frank, and Mikey's jaws were dropped. As soon as they saw Gerard dash away back into the school, that's when they knew it was their cue to run as well. They all trailed behind him, pleading for dear life as people shouted curses at them.

As they entered the school, they ran to the boy's bathroom, their shoes and boots clacking on the floor. When they got there, Gerard locked the main restroom door, refraining anyone from coming in. Gerard slammed his back against the door, slowly sliding down, trying to catch his breath, his chest heaving up and down as the other three did the same.

In shock, all of them stood silent for what felt like ten minutes. Mikey was sitting on the ground, cleaning his glasses, while Frank was sitting on the sink and Ray posed up next to Gerard. Frank rubbed his face, absent-mindedly before snorting, causing the whole group to lose it.

"Did you see his face??" Frank laughed out, the others following. "It was like a tomato!!" He vocalized, contorting his face to attempt to copy whatever the kids face displayed, earning another laugh from the group.

"He was totally asking for it!" Gerard admitted, running a hand through his hair, pushing it out of his face for once in a while. As everyone continued to laugh, Gerard let out a low, deep sigh, staring at the ground, reminiscing about what he did. The laughing began to fade out, slowly ringing out in his ears as it completely disappeared. Gerard’s stomach started churning again. Holy shit, why did he do that? Why did he fucking do that? He knew there would be consequences. But he wasn’t even scared of the school consequences. He feared the out-of-school consequences. God knows what would happen to him.

Swallowing hard, the laughing seemed to come back as he seemed to zone back in to earth, and a booming knock was heard from the other side of the door. Everyone went quiet and stared at each other, faces white, wondering who was going to face whoever was on the other side of the door. Should they continue hiding or should they answer? Just as Gerard scrambled over to his little brother, he opened his mouth to speak but was rudely interrupted by a voice who seemed to have some type of authority.

“Security, open up!” The voice yelled out, banging the door again. They were fucked. Ray sighed and put his head down, rubbing his eyes. School security was here, so either they were being caught for ‘skipping class’, or Gerard got caught for pouring the tray of food over that kid’s head. Either way, they were going to get in trouble, even though Gerard had committed that act himself, anything one person in their group does, everyone just gets caught up in it and blamed as well, especially since like half the school was on their ass. They might as well just walk out to get it over with.

As Gerard put his hands on his knees to give him a boost towards the door, The security officer banged on the door again. “Geez, I’m coming!” Gerard screeched out before mumbling something that sounded like “Pig…” Or some type of insult that was definitely aimed towards armed forces. He gets to the door and unlocks it, walking out with all the others behind him in a single file line, as if they were about to get executed. It was like follow the leader.

The security officer stared down at them, arms crossed, the guy was tall, even for Ray who might as well be a beanstalk. The group kept their heads down, the younger ones fiddling with their clothing accessories as Ray and Gerard just stood there like mannequins, refusing to acknowledge the principal standing right next to the security officer.

“Ma’am.” Gerard ended up blurting out, finally acknowledging her, nodding as he spoke, refusing eye contact.

“Gerard Arthur Way.” She responded, keeping her head high as she walked down the line of boys, her heels clicking on the tiled floor. Gerard hated how she always said his full name. He felt like it degraded him and something about the way she said it with her stupid pedestal of authority had ticked off Gerard since he started attending school here.

“So, do you mind explaining to me what happened outside during lunchtime?” She said, eyeing him down like an eagle; he continued to not return eye contact, staring deeply into the tiles, the grime in between making him sick. The school made him sick. The students, the teachers; Everyone.

Gerard grit his teeth, his jaw pulsing beneath the pressure. Gerard huffed, “A kid was making fun of me and my friends, so I did what any other person would do. I defended myself.” he gave the blunt response before looking up and making straight eye contact with the principal, his face clearly expressing a frustrated response.

The principal stood there in front of him like a pencil. She clicked her tongue and shook her head. “Was that wise, Mr. Way?” She questioned, tapping her heel on the ground, the noise ringing in Gerard’s ear. He was already beginning to get irritated even more than he already was.

Gerard nodded “Well, I’d argue it was, Mrs. Newcomb.” He defended himself, clenching the fabric of his pants in his fists, staring down at the ground again. He was just making it harder for himself to get out of the consequences of his actions, but when put on the spot like this, he could do nothing but make it worse. He also knew that those kids would be defended no matter what—they were the golden children of the school. Nepo babies. About ninety-nine percent of those kids’ parents funded the sports teams and most of the school’s extra-curricular activities. Fuckin’ rich kids. Just because their parents did all that, it didn’t mean Gerard had to treat them like they weren’t assholes.

“Don’t get too cocky now, Mr. Way. You were the one who physically initiated the conflict.” She bashed him, her eyes rolling to the back of her skull, she clicked her tongue again. She knew Gerard wouldn’t be able to defend himself in any credible way. He was too deep in shit. His mistake was yelling at them and their stupid group in the hallway in the first place.

Gerard wished he could just rip his ears off and run away so he didn’t have to continue listening to this long lecture. That’s when Ray stepped forward, Gerard looking down the line of boys to meet his gaze. “It was self-defense, Ma’am.” He declared, his eyes not faltering from Gerard’s.

The principal cocked an eyebrow, tapping her fingers on her satin thigh. She stood there, staring right at Ray, an unusual expression on her face as if she was looking for a wall of defense before speaking up again, “It doesn’t matter, he was still the one who started the altercation.”

To this, the line of boys went quiet, Ray slowly stepping back into his spot of where he was previously. The principal maintained her posture and position. She thought about whether to let the boys off easily or punish them. She wasn’t keen on them at all and usually, would do anything in her power to get them in trouble. But today, it looked like she was in a pretty good mood, which just highlighted how bad she usually was.

The principal cleared her throat and walked down the line of boys again. “You young men are dismissed,” she pointed at all of them except for Gerard. Mikey, Frank, and Ray scurried off to some hidden spot. Gerard was all alone now. “And as for you, Gerard. If you pull a stunt like this again, you will get suspended. We don’t want a repeat of freshman year, do we?” She said, bending down so she and Gerard were inches away from each other, Gerard pulling his head away and holding his breath. Stale coffee and tuna breath. Ew. On the other hand though, he was let off relatively easy, so part of him was thanking her.

“Now go, boy. Get to where you’re supposed to be!” She ordered, pointing at him, her ingrown acrylic nails irking him. Everything about her irked him. She was such a nasty being, inside and out. Gerard looked up to the security guard and he nodded him off. Using this as an indicator he should truly go, He ran in the direction of where all the other guys went.

Upon arriving at the end of the hall, he looked around, in search of them. They were nowhere to be found. Gerard continued snapping his head to various sides of the hallways. All of a sudden, it became hard to breathe, his chest heaved up and down as he began to sweat. He crashed against a locker, his lungs burning as he struggled to take deep breaths. Falling to his knees he felt his eyes get foggy. What a vulnerable state. What was happening to him? ‘No, no, no,’ He repeated in his head, his teeth clacking together as tears dropped onto the tiles below him. He clutched his chest and pulled his hair, as if it would help his current situation. He couldn’t even help himself. How did he expect to help his brother? His friends?

Letting out a muffled sob, he felt a hand shaking his shoulder. He spun around and tried defending himself, swatting at the hand with another sob. He felt the hand on his shoulder again. Why were they being so gentle? To him of all people? He blinked multiple times, trying to unblur his eyesight. As his vision began to clear up, he realized the curl pattern. Ray. It was Ray. More heaving breaths racked Gerard’s body until his breathing finally steadied. He clumsily lifted his hands, wiping his face and nose, snot everywhere.

“Gee, you okay?” Ray’s gentle voice washed over Gerard, a comforting embrace as Ray’s hand tightened on his shoulder. Gerard’s mind spun, a whirlwind of questions running through his head. He stared up at Ray, his expression blank, but face red and puffy. He tried to speak, but only a choked out squeak escaped. Then it clicked. A panic attack. A wave of self-disgust ran through him. He was so fucking pathetic. Did he really have a panic attack over this? Everything was going to be fine. He was just being a great big pussy. “Yeah… I’m okay,” he rasped, his voice cracking.

Ray broke the silence. “We were just getting water at the fountain around the corner,” he said, his voice filled with concern. “What happened? Did someone hurt you? Did they come back?” He spoke gently, trying to get Gerard to crawl out of his shell. When Gerard was like this it was nearly impossible to get him to talk. Even for a few days after the incident…

Before Gerard could answer, Frank and Mikey rushed over, their expressions shifting to concern as they looked at Gerard. “Gerard? Are you okay?” Mikey asked. Gerard simply nodded, then asked for help getting up. As soon as both he and Ray were back on their feet, the bell rang. ‘Just in fucking time,’ he thought to himself. He could avoid everyone’s questions. Call him avoidant, but it was just his comfort zone. Just one more class and the day would be over. Just one more class and he’d be able to lay in bed in silence, in his own disgusting comfort.

The last bell of the day screamed out, waking Gerard up from his sleep abruptly. He wiped the bit of drool he had that painted a mark across his cheek while standing up. He shrugged his backpack on, taking a deep breath. Since the panic attack, it felt like he hadn’t taken a breath that deep in a while.

He trudged his way out of the class and once again made his way through the crowd of people, stopping at the main doors, leaning against the brick wall, waiting for his brother to meet him there so they could walk home together.

He waited for a few moments, chewing on his nails, and accidentally biting too deep, causing the nail to bleed. He hissed and shook his hand as if it would ‘shake off’ the pain. He put the finger in his mouth and sucked it like he were a baby. While doing this, he looked up, seeing his brother walk down the hallway with both hands on his backpack straps. Gerard waved to him, to which his brother returned.

The walk towards the school exit was unusually quiet. None of them really spoke. Though words weren’t really necessary. Mikey finally broke the silence. “So, what happened earlier?” he asked, nudging a few pebbles with his shoe.

Gerard hesitated; his gaze fixed on the ground as he brawled with the question. “Panic attack,” he mumbled, his fingers finding their way to his mouth again. “I don’t know why,” he confessed, the words coming out in a rush.

Mikey looked at Gerard with concern after the confession. He adjusted his glasses, pushing them up the bridge of his nose. Suddenly, Gerard lunged forward, playfully ruffling Mikey’s hair and putting him in a headlock. “But I still protected ya, right?” He said with a snort, breaking the tension as Mikey hesitantly laughed along. As he laughed, it struck him. The tray incident at lunch wasn’t just for simple rebellion or for Gerard’s own person – it had been for Mikey. A tender smile spread across Mikey’s face, and his laughter became more comfortable.

The rest of the walk was peaceful, spent in comfortable silence as they talked about teachers and whatnot. Jokes being thrown around about Mr. Dirnt.

“I swear, Mr. Dirnt is really chill if you get to know him!” Gerard protested, “He’s probably the only reason I passed history my freshman year,” He admitted. “He just hates when people are late for his class. He won’t hold it against you, I swear.”

Mikey nodded with a smile, “Maybe. You know what? I don’t think my first day was as bad as I thought it would be.” He said, fiddling with the straps of his backpack as he looked up at the sky. He could go without looking for his surroundings because they were walking down an alley. Therefore, there wasn’t really anything that he could get hurt by.

God forbid he ever thought these things. Next thing he knew, he was crashing right into something. Or someone. He bent down to retrieve his glasses that had fallen off just for his eyesight to focus back to a face he didn’t recognize.

Gerard’s eyes flew open, his heart beating frantically against his chest. The sight of three more students rounding the corner made his stomach twist, as he stared at the scowls on their faces.

‘oh shit.’

“Look at the chubby fag and his little skinny fag!” One of the boys sneered, his voice hitting Mikey like a blow. His mouth fell open in shock, and he retreated, his back pressing against the brick wall as the boy moved closer. Mikey looked at Gerard, pleading for help with his eyes.

Gerard’s bag hit the ground with a thud as his own fear mirrored Mikey’s. His mouth hung open, eyes wide but unfocused. He was lost in his own world, again, as he always was. Detached from the present danger.

‘God damn it, Gerard.’

‘Wake up.’

‘WAKE.’

‘UP.’

He felt himself begin to inch towards the offering danger, each step turning more into a desperate sprint as he watched Mikey got socked across the face. A rage ignited within Gerard, driving him forward. He returned the blow with a sickening crunch, the sound of the guy’s nose breaking echoing in the air. The force of impact sending Gerard spiraling down to the ground, his face scraping against it as he landed hard next to Mikey. He looked up to see Mikey clutching his face, his expression clearly pained.

The guy stumbled back into his friends, a groan escaping his lips as he cradled his nose, blood gushing between his fingers. The other three stepped forward and advanced on Gerard and Mikey. Gerard instinctively recoiled like an abused dog as they grabbed Mikey by the collar and delivered another blow on his face. “This is for our friend, fag!” One guy yelled out. Mikey’s glasses went flying, cracking against the ground.

Gerard’s chest hitched, his breath coming in ragged gasps. “Not again,” he said to himself, panic clawing it’s way up his throat. He couldn’t afford a panic attack. Not now. The sickening sound of bone on bone echoed in his ears, each blow a hammer towards his own sanity. Then, something snapped. He lunged forward, a scream building in his chest, and sank his teeth into the nearest leg.

One guy screamed, kicking Gerard away. Gerard’s head slammed against the brick wall, a jolt of pain that made him wince. Tears pricking at his eyes. He tenderly touched the back of his head, his fingers returning, sticky with blood. Dizzy, he looked up just as Mikey was thrown aside.

Then, he was pulled into the fight again, a fist connecting with his jaw. The sweet metallic taste flooded his mouth, but he couldn’t quite place where it was coming from – was it his mouth or his nose? It didn’t matter. Before he knew it he was being relentlessly beaten upon again, and again, and again. Through the chaos of cheers and Mikey’s cries, he heard two more voices, distant, but clear, calling out both Mikey and Gerard’s names.

The shouts drew everyone’s attention, one guy still mid-punch, his fist waiting in the air. Gerard’s vision began to blur and he could only rely on the sounds around him. Each breath came out in wheezes. He fought to stay awake, his gaze finally settling on Mikey, who was kneeling, tears streaming down his face. That was the last thing Gerard saw before darkness consumed his vision.