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It was the last show of the tour, and there was a lot of anticipation. As promised, the DRAAG storyline had been continued and everything was coming to a resounding end.
The band had just finished the last song on the setlist. The crowd screamed for more, for another song.
They were prepared to play another one. Mikey was tweaking the tuning on his bass. Ray was taking a drink of water - Frank was stretching his arms.
Gerard hadn't moved, however. He was staring, unblinking, into the crowd. He was not planning on playing another song. He was not planning on playing another song ever again.
Things at home hadn't been going well. There was a lot of discourse surrounding Lindsey's past, and... it had taken a toll on their relationship. She blamed him, for some reason. Or at least took it out on him. Bandit was almost never home anymore. She didn't like the constant arguing.
Gerard didn't see a reason anymore. They'd been fine without him before, and they'll be fine without him again.
So when he slowly began to move, on that stage, moving towards that microphone, he had made up his mind.
Not that anybody had realised.
They wouldn't realise until it was too late.
He opened his mouth and began to speak. The band prepared themselves. They assumed he was introducing the next song. They didn't know what he would say, what he had decided.
"We are My Chemical Romance." Gerard said slowly into the microphone, his voice amplified around the venue. Cheers erupted from every direction.
"And..." He paused for a moment, his eyes unfocused and his words disjointed and he built up the courage. "We are the public enemy, and nobody will love us again."
Frank and Jarrod frowned at each other. They weren't sure what he was talking about. Ray walked over to Mikey and whispered something in his ear. Mikey just shrugged.
Maybe this was his way of ending the show, with no encore? Perhaps he was improvising some more more for DRAAG, or had prepared a surprise for the band to make their reaction more genuine.
The crowd screamed. They were excited - they wanted to hear more. None of them understood.
Instead of continuing, Gerard stepped back from the microphone, and watched as his magic worked.
Nobody expected it.
His close friends knew what was happening with him, of course, but... they didn't know it had gone this far.
The first explosion was to his left. A hidden bomb, detonated by someone Gerard had on the outside at his signal.
The screams started immediately. The crowd were no longer excited. People were rushing towards the exit. That's when the second and third went off, on his right and by the doors.
Fires were spreading quickly, leaving those uninjured enough trying to climb on to the stage to escape backstage.
Gerard could feel someone dragging him backwards. He barely turned his head to look at them from the corner of his eye. It was Mikey.
Gerard shook his head. He didn't want to leave the stage. Not when the biggest surprise was yet to come.
The other band members had come over, their eyes wide. Gerard turned to face them. Ray started helping people on to the stage, Gerard simply watched.
"What's happening?" Frank whispered, his throat raw and his cheeks tear-stained. "Gerard, what have you done?"
Mikey stared at his brother. "Gerard, did you do this?" His eyes were large and sad. He already knew the answer.
Jarrod realised what was coming. He was smart. He felt little attachment to Gerard. He started to run, trying to escape the stage, but at that point it was too late.
Gerard didn't answer anyone. He simply looked behind him, over his shoulder, at the destruction. That was the final signal.
He faced his bandmates one last time and finally said something. "Goodbye." He whispered. He was not sad. He was not scared. He was ready.
He was ready when the stage blew up. The dynamite carefully stacked below had finally been lit.
My Chemical Romance was no more.
And Gerard was right.
They were the public enemy.
Nobody loved them again.