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The person sitting next to Gerard both is, and is not, Mikey. This is something Gerard has forced themself to accept.
The first time Gerard saw Mikey die, something in them shriveled up into nothingness. The worst part was the knowledge that Mikey's death was all Gerard's fault. They refused to perform, refused to sing for these monsters. They expected a punishment, but had been so sure they would be the one to receive it.
Instead, the guards shot Mikey in the head.
Gerard's only cold comfort came from the fact that no one could hurt Mikey anymore.
But that was only the first time Mikey was killed. He kept coming back. Draag kept bringing him back.
The boy the guards brought in next both was, and was not, Mikey.
He looked like Mikey, talked like Mikey, had Mikey’s memories, at least most of them. Damningly, he believed himself to be Mikey.
Did it matter really if he was a clone?
Gerard knew from the start that they would love this Mikey too. This Mikey was just as important, just as alive, just as much worth saving, just as much their brother as the original had been.
It hurt just as much when clone Mikey was killed.
After a certain point Gerard stopped being surprised when the guards brought out a new Mikey. It was just how things happened here, there was a new Mikey, fresh from wherever they were made. Gerard held him tight for as long as they could. Then at some point he was killed, usually as a punishment against one of them.
Mikey never seems to know what he is, and no one ever tells him.
The person sitting next to Gerard both is, and is not, Mikey. But he is, without any doubt, Gerard's brother.