Thirty Something: The Why Files of Frank Anthony Iero Jr. (7/12)
Title: Thirty Something: The Why Files of Frank Anthony Iero Jr. (7/12)
Author:
xx_anarchy_xx
Rating: Hard R
Pairing: Gerard/Frank, Ray/Bob, Brendon/Ryan, Jamia/Jared, Mikey/Alicia
Disclaimer: I own nothing but merchandice and an overactive imagination
Summary: The first kiss of the year is a good indicator of how the rest will pan out and if they're all as good as that one then I'm gonna be a really lucky guy...
Characters: My Chemical Romance/ Panic at the Disco
Warnings: AU, boysex
Author's Note: Another day another month
January // February // March // April // May // June
Sunday, July 4th
To be honest I’ve never really seen the point of Independence Day, it’s a special time yes that I do get but to me it’s less about patriotism and more about watching shit explode for free. From the roof of the apartment block you can see for miles, it’s really quite pretty, so whenever an occasion rolls around that involves fireworks me and Gee hit the roof to just watch them. At first it was kinda romantic, under the stars and exploding rockets kissing in each other’s embrace but now it’s more about Luke’s enjoyment. Kids always have to come first no matter how much you want to do something else. He stares at the sky, grinning whenever something explodes while me and Gee lie on the floor. He pecks my cheek when Luke’s distracted, holding my hand like an awkward teenager on a first date. I can’t keep the grin off my face.
He can be such a dork sometimes.
Tuesday, July 6th
Why do people want intricate shit? It’s just gonna turn into a blob anyway! I couldn’t help but yell in my head as I continued to tattoo tiny little swirls around a previous piece I’d done earlier, but then I’m hardly one to talk what with all the actual red and black dots and stars on my right arm. It’s gonna go so blotchy when I’m an old man… People will probably think I have some kind of skin disease but hopefully I’ll just end up as one of those really annoying old men who don’t give a shit about anything and always complain that gas prices are too high. I’d like to end up like that, it seems fun.
Thursday, July 8th
Ray and Mikey are also coming with us to San Diego. They’re bigger comic book nerds than I am so it seems right somehow. I will have to wear the Batman glasses though. I found them again the other day, randomly, so I will defiantly be wearing them and seeing if I can out geek someone. That or I’ll just make Gee wear them for the whole three days.
Actually that sounds like a lot of fun…
Friday, July 9th
Luke doesn’t need the bandage around his ankle anymore; he’ll defiantly have a scar though but only a tiny one. The bandage is there so he doesn’t pick at it, like one of those lamp shades on a dog with a cast. Jamia is less than happy with me about it. She’s made that very clear last time. Luke’s just happy he gets what he’s started calling ‘a hardcore scar’.
I haven’t got the heart to tell him it’ll probably disappear completely in a few years.
Saturday, July 10th
Bob, Ray and his magical mystery hair came round. There’s a very good reason he now has magical mystery hair but that’ll become apparent later. The original intention was to get a bit tipsy and just fuck around but like all good plans it soon spiraled into something far worse.
I Have Never.
I hate I Have Never! For some reason I can’t lie when I’m drunk, I’ve never been able to but I really want to learn how, so I Have Never is my idea of a bad dream. Everything has that weird glossy look so it seems so inviting but delve in further and it’s a thunderstorm of shit. On the other hand it’s a very good way to find out things about your friends. The statements came from a pack of cards and a print out Ray had found during songs while he was at work as his alter ego.
His alter ego is so much cooler than he is.
Each suit and number represented a different statement. Take it in turns to pick a card. Easy. I didn’t even know we had that much alcohol in the house! We sat in a circle on the floor, I did try to sit on the couch like an adult but I kept falling off and smashing my face against the floor. After four times I just got pissed off with it.
“Nine of hearts…I have never jerked off in a public place,” Ray read out. We all looked at each other, no one daring to move. Ray, Bob and Gee drank. I sat back and twiddled my thumbs. That I can safely say I haven’t done. I have self control. Well, most of the time.
“Jack of clubs…I’ve never fucked someone for a bet,” Bob said. Ray sighed and drank, Gee wore a smirk.
“Explain man,” Bob questioned.
“Umm, okay. It was last year of high school and I kept having a… thing with this guy in my health class so assface here dared me to fuck him,” he said glaring at Gee.
“It was so fucking funny. He couldn’t walk right for days!” Gee laughed.
“Ah you laugh but I still have that favour you owe me and I can use it at anytime I want too.”
“Oh yeah, I forgot about that. ANYWAY! Two of diamonds…I have never fantasized about my friends,” Gee smiled. We all had to drink then. There wasn’t even any point trying to deny it. “Okay then, change it up a bit. I have never fantasized about a friend who isn’t in this room.” We still all drank.
“Ten of clubs…I’ve never kissed a family member,” I read. “What does it mean by kiss?”
“I think we can rule out an infant peck on the cheek. I think this means lips and tongues,” Ray said. Gee sighed loudly and drank, his face three shades redder.
“Explain,” I said.
“Home from collage for the holidays. Mikey and I got really drunk and…stuff happened. I’m not saying anymore and if any of you mention this to him I’m slit your throats while you sleep.”
“Nine of spades…I have never been naked in a public place,” Ray smirked, drinking immediately. Gee did the same.
“I’m gonna guess high school or collage,” I said. They nodded.
“Last day before we had to move out of our dorm room we decided to go streaking, well he forced me to go streaking,” Gee said. Ray still smirked.
“Six of hearts…I have never made an ass out of myself while high.” Gee and Bob drank. Bob told us about the time he thought he was indestructible and tried to run through the wall of his house and then had to be taken to the emergency room, still high and then started flirting with a chair while the room was full of injured people. Pretty embarrassing. Gee told us about several occasions, one where he thought he was Batman and Mikey was Robin (why?), and another collage situation where he thought Ray’s hair could talk and was freaked out for days when he saw and heard it sing.
“I swear I thought it was singing Mama Mia,” he said. Ray had collapsed onto the floor in a fit of giggles.
“You’ve got magic hair man!” I laughed.
“Filled with mysteries,” he giggled back.
Thus brings us to Ray’s magical mystery hair.
“Okay King of hearts…I have never bought porn.” Everyone but Gee drank.
“You fucking liar. You’re saying you’ve never bought porn?” Bob accused. Gee nodded.
“Didn’t have to. Just used Ray’s.”
“You cheap fucker!” Ray yelled. “I thought my mom found them but it was you all along!”
Sunday, July 11th
It’s always a weird sight when you first come around from a drink induced sleep to see your friends on your floor passed out but still groping each other at the same time. I gingerly stepped over them to get to the kitchen where Gee was passed out in the corner with his shirt half on. Why I honestly can’t remember but I picked him up and carried him to bed so his back wouldn’t give him grief during the rest of the ever shirking day. The groping pair did provide a rather nice foot rest while I watched TV with the sound turned way down and drank coffee and had my usual morning’s worth of pills. It was just a little disturbing when they started making noises. They woke up before Gee did anyway. Lazy bastard was asleep all day.
Tuesday, July 12th
It’s never good when you come home from an extra long shift completely shattered and hear mewing. It’s also never good when you then see your son chasing after a pile of sheets that are walking across the floor by themselves. I stood by the door and watched him for at least five minutes before he noticed me. He stopped, frozen as the sheets bumped into a wall.
“Care to explain,” I said. He stayed frozen and the sheets soon made their way to me. The sheets were mewing. I took off the top one and there was Mikey’s cat Bunny, looking up at me like I was some kind of god or something. “Why is Bunny here?” I asked.
“Followed me,” Luke mumbled. I bent down and picked Bunny up; mewing happily now the sheets were gone.
“Then we’re gonna have to take him home.”
“Can’t we take him back tomorrow?” Luke asked, staring at the floor with his ‘I know
I’ve done wrong but please forgive me’ look.
“No we can’t. Get your shoes.”
Wednesday, July 13th
Kids pick up on more than what you say. They also pick up on what you act like and how you dress as cleverly demonstrated today. It was a ripped jeans frenzy at Alicia’s.
“Might have picked it up off Mikey?” I said feebly as Alicia practically death glared me into submission.
“That’s a possibility but a slim one.”
Damnit! That’s true! Damnit!
It’s hard enough to buy him jeans that fit as it is without him cutting holes in his knees and then doing the same to Chloe’s because she asked him too. I now need to patch them up, which is more work I didn’t need.
Thursday, July 14th
“Don’t book any appointments for the 22nd,” Jepha said as soon as I walked through the door.
“Why not?” I asked, walking behind the counter and opening the big appointment book to see what I had to do today. Yep, it’s still a book. No computers here!
“The girl’s birthday. Shop is closed.”
“But I can still work,” I pointed out. I could see Jepha thinking it over in his drug hazed mind. He says he doesn’t do any drugs but that’s the biggest lie ever after man walking on the moon. It’s the Bert guy he blabbers on about sometimes when I can be bothered to listen. From what I can piece together he’s Jepha’s biggest bad influence.
“Okay then. If you think you can run the store by yourself, go ahead. I’ll give you the keys night before.”
I can look after a hyperactive six year old, I think I can look after this place.
Saturday, July 16th
Had to look after Chloe for Mikey and Alicia which is only fair really. Even though she’s just a kid it still feels weird to have a female pretense around the place, I caught myself inadvertently using a coaster. I mean what the hell! Last time I used one I was still living with Jamia and even then it was so she wouldn’t do that weird huffy noise and then make a big deal of moving the glass like it weight 200 pounds. I never got why she did that. Must be another girl thing.
Ah but Chloe loves her Uncle Gee, probably cause he’s such a pushover to her magnified eye charms. Man if he was straight he’d be the easiest guy ever! Girls would just fuck him and leave him after taking all him money. Luke knows that Gee is a pushover when Chloe’s around so even he starts to use it to his advantage. Hell I might even start doing it! Actually I don’t really have to; I’ve already found all his weak spots. He’s such a pushover he can’t even send his own niece to sleep which makes me look like the bad man.
“You suck at discipline,” I grinned, snuggling up to him on the couch now that we were alone.
“I just can’t say no to her. It’s like saying no to a puppy.”
“A puppy that will one day want you to buy her the most expensive car on the lot.”
“I hope not. I can’t afford that for myself!”
Sunday, July 17th
“And now we’re out of poptarts,” I said as the two faces looked up at me. They were surprisingly perky for first thing in the morning. I guess the sugar wasn’t gonna do anything to help that. When the poptarts popped they scurried off to Luke’s room.
“They’re planning something,” Gee said when he emerged from our room. I stared at him while he reached for the cereal.
“You’re being paranoid. They’re just kids, they can’t do anything.”
“Really? Well you’ve got the genius mixing with the hyperactive right now. There’s a good chance they’re plotting something.”
“Yeah, in your head,” I smiled and hugged him, resting my head on his shoulder. “You’re so cute when you’re paranoid.”
“And you’re cute when you quote Simpsons lines first thing in the morning.”
Wednesday, July 20th
“You have to see this,” Alicia grinned before dragging me to her living room. I keep forgetting how big Mikey’s house his until I actually walk around in it. “It’s so cute.”
“Cute as in a girly thing or cute as in a box of kittens in bobble hats?”
Turns out it wasn’t a box of kittens in bobble hats though I could see why Alicia thought it was cute. Luke looked less than happy about the situation he found himself in. He practically ran to me when he spotted me and dragged me out.
“What’s up with grumpy?” Gee asked, gesturing towards Luke who was beating the crap out of something on one if his games.
“Isabella made him marry her.” I couldn’t help but grin. It was just another girly thing I don’t really understand. It’s a very weird kid game though, let’s marry each other. It’s both pointless and inaccurate to what actually happens.
“Damn!” He laughed. “She’s gonna make you start wearing pink next.” Luke’s face dropped in horror.
“She can’t do that!” He protested.
“Yeah she can. She’s your wife; she can do whatever she wants to you now.”
“Gee, stop freaking him out.”
Friday, July 22nd
The first day of proper responsibility. I just secretly hope that Jepha had a shitty day because he was freaking out so much. Granted he probably didn’t but it doesn’t stop me hoping. It was pretty relaxing considering I had total responsibility if anything fucked up. Good thing I purposely didn’t book many appointments then hu? Essentially I got paid for doing very little but of course there’s no way that Jepha could ever check that out. I thought this through, most of the time with a very smug expression. I was on a day time high until Jamia text me saying her car’s in the shop so I’d have to take Luke round hers.
Fun.
Of course Gee just had to come too.
“You only wanna know where she lives so you can fuck with it,” I said to him.
“That’s not entirely true,” he said back.
“But it blatantly is though.”
“You think that’s all I care about? You disappoint me Frankie,” he mocked.
“It is though, isn’t it?” I said after a few moments silence.
“If it was why would I say?”
Sunday, July 24th
“What time do we leave tomorrow?” I asked, searching through drawers to find my passport.
“More like tonight. Flight is at four am, well there about, so we need to be at the airport for two.”
“There’s no point going to bed,” I grinned, grabbing my passport. “Oh god I forgot how weird I looked in this thing.”
“Lemme see,” Gee said. I showed him my picture and I could tell he was trying not to laugh.
“Yeah, I was going through a whole ‘dreads are cool’ stage.”
“Not as bad as mine,” he said, showing me his.
“Holy crap!” I giggled. I just couldn’t hold it in. It was on par with the embarrassing year book picture that everyone has.
“I know…” he mumbled.
Monday, July 25th
I now hate early morning flights. Ray’s hair made a nice pillow though, I was glad he fell asleep before I did otherwise I wouldn’t have gotten away with it. We were all bundled on top of each other in the departure lounge; different body parts somebody’s pillow. We must have looked like a bunch of homeless people. It was a drag getting on the plane itself. Everyone seemed drowsy and far too tired to make any conscious decisions. Mix that in with two sleeping children and you’ll see the predicament of the early morning flight.
“How long is the flight?” I asked Gee before we took off.
“Six and half to seven hours.”
Oh my god!
“Then don’t expect my full attention.”
After the safety demonstrations I fell back to sleep. Those seats do not make a good bed that’s for sure. I’d warned Luke to actually behave before we left the apartment which he did, granted he was asleep most of the time like I was but an achievement is an achievement.
The hotel was a welcome relief. My ass was completely numb! I fell face first onto the bed and refused to move, all sound being muffled by the sheet that was rising around my face. Luke nudged me pretty soon after.
So much for refusing to move…
I rolled over and slid down the end of the bed to look at him.
“There’s someone at the door,” he said. Sure enough he was right. I groaned and went to get it, Gee busying himself with something in the bathroom. A bright orange woman smiled at me with dangerously white teeth when I opened it. She’d given herself a teenage facelift (tying her hair far too tight in a pony tail on the top of her head). Her smile scared me the most though. It was kinda like that creepy axe murderer smile in horror films but a little less human.
“Hi, are you…Gerard Way?” She asked, checking the clip board that seemed to be glued to her arm.
“No. I can get him for you though.” She nodded thanks and I slouched off to get him. She deeply unsettled me. I yelled through the door to Gee before collapsing on the bed again, this time face up. I saw him run out of the bathroom through the corner of my eye and then run back when the door closed.
“Who was that?” I asked.
“Some representative of the hotel who clearly needs to lay off the sun beds!” He laughed. “I’m pretty sure if you licked her you would be cured of scurvy.”
“If you licked her I’d be worried why you were licking her,” I giggled.
“Is that a hint of jealousy I detect?” He grinned, standing in front of where my legs on the bed.
“Why would I be jealous of her? If anything she should be jealous of me,” I said, sitting up and resting on my hands.
“Then you won’t mind if I take her up on her offer?”
“What offer?”
“She asked me out for a drink and since you’re not jealous you won’t mind if I go.” I stood up on my toes so we were eye to eye. He didn’t flinch. I didn’t know what to make of it and I’d be lying to say if I wasn’t jealous then. Gee’s accidental grin gave the game away. I shoved him playfully and he stumbled backwards laughing.
“I nearly had you!”
“Yeah. Nearly. Takes a lot more than that to get me Way, you should know that by now.”
All of us spent most of the evening hanging out in our room. It’s like a mini sitcom. Ray slept across the hall and Mikey and Chloe slept next door. Seriously if we just threw in some hilariously misplaced items, a love triangle and sold it we’d be millionaires by the end of the week!
Which wouldn’t be a bad thing…
“Okay because you’re with me you get access all area passes,” Gee said, reading from a handout Dark Horse has sent up.
“Never a bad thing,” Ray grinned.
“This will enable you to see all the things that normal ticket holders don’t, like exclusive movie previews and one on one talks with the artists.”
“Movie previews as in…” Mikey pressed.
“I’m gonna be working. I don’t get to see them,” Gee shrugged.
“You’re probably not gonna be on all day. And if they really are exclusive they’ll have a late night showing,” I said, plucking ideas out of my head.
“Dude it’s not a movie theatre,” Ray smirked.
“Just an idea.”
Tuesday, July 26th
The convention building was buzzing with the kind of people most tended to avoid in school, the type of kids who hung out in random corners of the hallway and seemed to speak in their own language.
Gee was right, geeks never do grow old. They fill out and get more obsessive though. People were going nuts! Like a rockstar just walked into the building and was giving away free candy nuts.
Me, Mikey and Ray wondered around to start with, checking everything out with sweeping glances and our passes around our necks. Ray practically squealed in delight when we came across the Marvel section. We had to spend a lot of time there. It was weird to see him blend in so naturally, like he was meant to be there.
“We’re here for three days,” Mikey reminded him, basically saying ‘can we move the hell on?’
“Exactly. Means I can spend lots of time here,” he grinned.
“Why do you even like Marvel anyway? They’re all a bunch of do-gooders,” I said. The silence was shocking. All eyes in the section turned to me.
“You’ve never been to one of these before have you?” Mikey asked. I shook my head. “Then I need to explain there are a few things you never say.”
Those things are:
- NEVER insult a comic character without some kind of fundamental proof that they suck
- NEVER insult the company that made them
- ALWAYS think before you say anything cause most of the time it’s better just to shut the hell up.
Wish I’d known those sooner really.
Eventually we managed to drag Ray out of the section, not without a fight I might add, and continued to look around the place. It was bigger than I expected that’s for sure. Any bigger and I’d need a map.
I’d promised Gee I’d see him at midday-ish so I left Ray and Mikey squabbling about something to do with the Flash and X-Men and found my way to the Dark Horse section. He was sat with four other guys who were all pretty busy talking to lines people. Gee smiled when he saw me, saying something to the guy he was say next to before joining me.
“Smoke break?” He asked.
“I think you need to more than I do.”
We sat on a bench outside the venue building, the heat just the wrong side of uncomfortable and crossing over into ‘Dear god that’s hot’ territory. I was pretty sure the green paint on the bench was starting to melt in the sun cause I was getting high of some kind of fumes from near by.
“Ray really likes X-Men,” I said between puffs. Gee grinned.
“I know full well. I’ve had to put up with it since…well, elementary school.” Gee scratched his head as he tried to remember.
“Ouch,” I muttered.
“Oh come on, there’s nothing wrong with it. It’s just not to your taste.”
“Damn straight. Bunch of do-gooders…”
“You get used to it. I’ve kinda learnt to block most of it out.”
“Unless he starts on his Batman rant,” I pointed out.
“That’s true. Never offend the Dark Knight when I’m around.”
“I know Gee. I have had to listen to your fights for a while now.”
“Then feel sorry for Mikey. He’s had it pretty much since he was born.”
“Fuck!”
Gee finished at 6, whether that was the end of the day or not he was done. Luke and Chloe came back from their day with the other artist’s kids at around the same time. The place had a kind of day care service while the parent’s worked. They both seemed pretty happy, and happy as in they wouldn’t stop talking about it between themselves. We just left them to it.
Wednesday, July 27th
Talk day. Where all the major companies give speeches about their upcoming ideas. It was almost like a lecture apart from the cheering whenever a name came up.
“You don’t have to give one of these then?” I hissed to Gee.
“Not today. Have to tomorrow though. Really dreading that,” he hissed back.
“You’ll be fine. I’ll be supporting you all the way.”
“You’d better be,” he laughed.
After the talks and the numb ass creeping back the previews were finally unveiled to pass holders and employees, everyone else seeing them tomorrow. We stared in awe at the list, one movie capturing us all immediately and a lot of others.
Sin City 2.
We had to fight out way into the line to get in, I had to grab onto Mikey for fear of being swept away like a trailer in a twister. It was the only time I’d ever seen a movie where people cheered when the lights went off.
Unnecessary to say the movie was awesome and I do intend to see it several times in theatres before buying the DVD and watching the crap out of it. I just wish Gee didn’t have to go back to work so I could have watched it with him.
“Uncle Gee, look what we did!” Chloe squeaked before bouncing on the bed next to him with a piece of paper in her hand.
“Wow. I’d be worried Mikes. Looks like you got a little artist here,” he said.
“Whatever my baby wants to do. As long as she doesn’t end up as moody as you were,” Mikey smiled. I caught a glimpse of what was on the paper and it was really good. “Come on then…Science Girl, what you want for dinner?”
“Umm…pizza!”
“Alright, but don’t tell mom you’ve had it two nights in a row.”
I love Mikey’s relationship with Chloe. It’s hard to explain but they’re more best friends than father/daughter. She quickly joined Luke on the floor, who was doing something to his drawing.
“Who does that make you then?” I asked him. He looked up and smiled.
“Why Boy, cause I ask so many questions.” Gee put his hand in front of his mouth to stop himself bursting with laughter.
“Why Boy and Science Girl. I see a crime fighting duo waiting to happen,” Ray smiled. The kids beamed.
“Think you might have some competition Gee,” I grinned.
“Bring it on!”
Thursday, July 28th
The last day. The conference room had the same buzz that the whole building did on the first day. I was just nervous for Gee; I know his problem with public speaking, even though he says it’s gotten better, he still gets nervous. If I could do it for him I would, I have no problem making an ass out of myself in front of quite a lot of people, I spent most of my youth doing exactly that.
Well, that and getting arrested and avoiding juvy.
Gee was up somewhere in the middle, which is always a good place to be. He had to explain his comic and answer a few questions. Sounds pretty easy but I knew he would be incredibly nervous. To the untrained eye he looked calm but I knew him better, the slight fidget in his seat and the scratch to the back of the head was enough to tell a completely different story. I ducked out when he left the stage to find him. He was outside in the shade of a tree in the parking lot, fumbling in his pockets for a cigarette. Without thinking I gave him on of mine. He smiled and lit it with shaky hands.
“You did great,” I complemented.
“Great as in they ate me alive!” He spat.
“What the hell are you talking about?”
“Weren’t you listening to what they asked? They think its shit.”
“The guys I was sat next to didn’t. Like you said about me hating Marvel, it’s just not some people’s taste.” He paused and stared at me.
“You think so?”
“Yeah. If you created something that everyone liked you wouldn’t do what you do. It’s all about being different when so many people want to be the same.” Gee smiled and pulled me into a hug, kissing the top of my head.
“I’m glad you’re here.”
“So am I. Beats the crap out of work.”
Friday, July 29th
The flight home was during the late afternoon, which I was fucking thankful for. It did mean we’d be flying through the night but you can’t have it all. Half way through quite a few people had drifted off to sleep (there’s not a lot else to do on a plane). Gee nudged me from my book with that look in his eye.
“Are you kidding me?” I hissed. He shook his head.
“A whole week without you has driven me mad,” he growled in my ear. It was hard to suppress the shiver that coursed through me.
“We can’t,” I argued feebly.
“Why not?”
Sometimes I hate myself for giving in so easily to his requests but then he practically rips a chunk out of my neck and I can’t. I can’t hate myself and I could never hate him. Times change quick. If I’d have known what would happen in my future I wouldn’t have done so many terrible things in my past.
Author:
xx_anarchy_xx
Rating: Hard R
Pairing: Gerard/Frank, Ray/Bob, Brendon/Ryan, Jamia/Jared, Mikey/Alicia
Disclaimer: I own nothing but merchandice and an overactive imagination
Summary: The first kiss of the year is a good indicator of how the rest will pan out and if they're all as good as that one then I'm gonna be a really lucky guy...
Characters: My Chemical Romance/ Panic at the Disco
Warnings: AU, boysex
Author's Note: Another day another month
January // February // March // April // May // June
Sunday, July 4th
To be honest I’ve never really seen the point of Independence Day, it’s a special time yes that I do get but to me it’s less about patriotism and more about watching shit explode for free. From the roof of the apartment block you can see for miles, it’s really quite pretty, so whenever an occasion rolls around that involves fireworks me and Gee hit the roof to just watch them. At first it was kinda romantic, under the stars and exploding rockets kissing in each other’s embrace but now it’s more about Luke’s enjoyment. Kids always have to come first no matter how much you want to do something else. He stares at the sky, grinning whenever something explodes while me and Gee lie on the floor. He pecks my cheek when Luke’s distracted, holding my hand like an awkward teenager on a first date. I can’t keep the grin off my face.
He can be such a dork sometimes.
Tuesday, July 6th
Why do people want intricate shit? It’s just gonna turn into a blob anyway! I couldn’t help but yell in my head as I continued to tattoo tiny little swirls around a previous piece I’d done earlier, but then I’m hardly one to talk what with all the actual red and black dots and stars on my right arm. It’s gonna go so blotchy when I’m an old man… People will probably think I have some kind of skin disease but hopefully I’ll just end up as one of those really annoying old men who don’t give a shit about anything and always complain that gas prices are too high. I’d like to end up like that, it seems fun.
Thursday, July 8th
Ray and Mikey are also coming with us to San Diego. They’re bigger comic book nerds than I am so it seems right somehow. I will have to wear the Batman glasses though. I found them again the other day, randomly, so I will defiantly be wearing them and seeing if I can out geek someone. That or I’ll just make Gee wear them for the whole three days.
Actually that sounds like a lot of fun…
Friday, July 9th
Luke doesn’t need the bandage around his ankle anymore; he’ll defiantly have a scar though but only a tiny one. The bandage is there so he doesn’t pick at it, like one of those lamp shades on a dog with a cast. Jamia is less than happy with me about it. She’s made that very clear last time. Luke’s just happy he gets what he’s started calling ‘a hardcore scar’.
I haven’t got the heart to tell him it’ll probably disappear completely in a few years.
Saturday, July 10th
Bob, Ray and his magical mystery hair came round. There’s a very good reason he now has magical mystery hair but that’ll become apparent later. The original intention was to get a bit tipsy and just fuck around but like all good plans it soon spiraled into something far worse.
I Have Never.
I hate I Have Never! For some reason I can’t lie when I’m drunk, I’ve never been able to but I really want to learn how, so I Have Never is my idea of a bad dream. Everything has that weird glossy look so it seems so inviting but delve in further and it’s a thunderstorm of shit. On the other hand it’s a very good way to find out things about your friends. The statements came from a pack of cards and a print out Ray had found during songs while he was at work as his alter ego.
His alter ego is so much cooler than he is.
Each suit and number represented a different statement. Take it in turns to pick a card. Easy. I didn’t even know we had that much alcohol in the house! We sat in a circle on the floor, I did try to sit on the couch like an adult but I kept falling off and smashing my face against the floor. After four times I just got pissed off with it.
“Nine of hearts…I have never jerked off in a public place,” Ray read out. We all looked at each other, no one daring to move. Ray, Bob and Gee drank. I sat back and twiddled my thumbs. That I can safely say I haven’t done. I have self control. Well, most of the time.
“Jack of clubs…I’ve never fucked someone for a bet,” Bob said. Ray sighed and drank, Gee wore a smirk.
“Explain man,” Bob questioned.
“Umm, okay. It was last year of high school and I kept having a… thing with this guy in my health class so assface here dared me to fuck him,” he said glaring at Gee.
“It was so fucking funny. He couldn’t walk right for days!” Gee laughed.
“Ah you laugh but I still have that favour you owe me and I can use it at anytime I want too.”
“Oh yeah, I forgot about that. ANYWAY! Two of diamonds…I have never fantasized about my friends,” Gee smiled. We all had to drink then. There wasn’t even any point trying to deny it. “Okay then, change it up a bit. I have never fantasized about a friend who isn’t in this room.” We still all drank.
“Ten of clubs…I’ve never kissed a family member,” I read. “What does it mean by kiss?”
“I think we can rule out an infant peck on the cheek. I think this means lips and tongues,” Ray said. Gee sighed loudly and drank, his face three shades redder.
“Explain,” I said.
“Home from collage for the holidays. Mikey and I got really drunk and…stuff happened. I’m not saying anymore and if any of you mention this to him I’m slit your throats while you sleep.”
“Nine of spades…I have never been naked in a public place,” Ray smirked, drinking immediately. Gee did the same.
“I’m gonna guess high school or collage,” I said. They nodded.
“Last day before we had to move out of our dorm room we decided to go streaking, well he forced me to go streaking,” Gee said. Ray still smirked.
“Six of hearts…I have never made an ass out of myself while high.” Gee and Bob drank. Bob told us about the time he thought he was indestructible and tried to run through the wall of his house and then had to be taken to the emergency room, still high and then started flirting with a chair while the room was full of injured people. Pretty embarrassing. Gee told us about several occasions, one where he thought he was Batman and Mikey was Robin (why?), and another collage situation where he thought Ray’s hair could talk and was freaked out for days when he saw and heard it sing.
“I swear I thought it was singing Mama Mia,” he said. Ray had collapsed onto the floor in a fit of giggles.
“You’ve got magic hair man!” I laughed.
“Filled with mysteries,” he giggled back.
Thus brings us to Ray’s magical mystery hair.
“Okay King of hearts…I have never bought porn.” Everyone but Gee drank.
“You fucking liar. You’re saying you’ve never bought porn?” Bob accused. Gee nodded.
“Didn’t have to. Just used Ray’s.”
“You cheap fucker!” Ray yelled. “I thought my mom found them but it was you all along!”
Sunday, July 11th
It’s always a weird sight when you first come around from a drink induced sleep to see your friends on your floor passed out but still groping each other at the same time. I gingerly stepped over them to get to the kitchen where Gee was passed out in the corner with his shirt half on. Why I honestly can’t remember but I picked him up and carried him to bed so his back wouldn’t give him grief during the rest of the ever shirking day. The groping pair did provide a rather nice foot rest while I watched TV with the sound turned way down and drank coffee and had my usual morning’s worth of pills. It was just a little disturbing when they started making noises. They woke up before Gee did anyway. Lazy bastard was asleep all day.
Tuesday, July 12th
It’s never good when you come home from an extra long shift completely shattered and hear mewing. It’s also never good when you then see your son chasing after a pile of sheets that are walking across the floor by themselves. I stood by the door and watched him for at least five minutes before he noticed me. He stopped, frozen as the sheets bumped into a wall.
“Care to explain,” I said. He stayed frozen and the sheets soon made their way to me. The sheets were mewing. I took off the top one and there was Mikey’s cat Bunny, looking up at me like I was some kind of god or something. “Why is Bunny here?” I asked.
“Followed me,” Luke mumbled. I bent down and picked Bunny up; mewing happily now the sheets were gone.
“Then we’re gonna have to take him home.”
“Can’t we take him back tomorrow?” Luke asked, staring at the floor with his ‘I know
I’ve done wrong but please forgive me’ look.
“No we can’t. Get your shoes.”
Wednesday, July 13th
Kids pick up on more than what you say. They also pick up on what you act like and how you dress as cleverly demonstrated today. It was a ripped jeans frenzy at Alicia’s.
“Might have picked it up off Mikey?” I said feebly as Alicia practically death glared me into submission.
“That’s a possibility but a slim one.”
Damnit! That’s true! Damnit!
It’s hard enough to buy him jeans that fit as it is without him cutting holes in his knees and then doing the same to Chloe’s because she asked him too. I now need to patch them up, which is more work I didn’t need.
Thursday, July 14th
“Don’t book any appointments for the 22nd,” Jepha said as soon as I walked through the door.
“Why not?” I asked, walking behind the counter and opening the big appointment book to see what I had to do today. Yep, it’s still a book. No computers here!
“The girl’s birthday. Shop is closed.”
“But I can still work,” I pointed out. I could see Jepha thinking it over in his drug hazed mind. He says he doesn’t do any drugs but that’s the biggest lie ever after man walking on the moon. It’s the Bert guy he blabbers on about sometimes when I can be bothered to listen. From what I can piece together he’s Jepha’s biggest bad influence.
“Okay then. If you think you can run the store by yourself, go ahead. I’ll give you the keys night before.”
I can look after a hyperactive six year old, I think I can look after this place.
Saturday, July 16th
Had to look after Chloe for Mikey and Alicia which is only fair really. Even though she’s just a kid it still feels weird to have a female pretense around the place, I caught myself inadvertently using a coaster. I mean what the hell! Last time I used one I was still living with Jamia and even then it was so she wouldn’t do that weird huffy noise and then make a big deal of moving the glass like it weight 200 pounds. I never got why she did that. Must be another girl thing.
Ah but Chloe loves her Uncle Gee, probably cause he’s such a pushover to her magnified eye charms. Man if he was straight he’d be the easiest guy ever! Girls would just fuck him and leave him after taking all him money. Luke knows that Gee is a pushover when Chloe’s around so even he starts to use it to his advantage. Hell I might even start doing it! Actually I don’t really have to; I’ve already found all his weak spots. He’s such a pushover he can’t even send his own niece to sleep which makes me look like the bad man.
“You suck at discipline,” I grinned, snuggling up to him on the couch now that we were alone.
“I just can’t say no to her. It’s like saying no to a puppy.”
“A puppy that will one day want you to buy her the most expensive car on the lot.”
“I hope not. I can’t afford that for myself!”
Sunday, July 17th
“And now we’re out of poptarts,” I said as the two faces looked up at me. They were surprisingly perky for first thing in the morning. I guess the sugar wasn’t gonna do anything to help that. When the poptarts popped they scurried off to Luke’s room.
“They’re planning something,” Gee said when he emerged from our room. I stared at him while he reached for the cereal.
“You’re being paranoid. They’re just kids, they can’t do anything.”
“Really? Well you’ve got the genius mixing with the hyperactive right now. There’s a good chance they’re plotting something.”
“Yeah, in your head,” I smiled and hugged him, resting my head on his shoulder. “You’re so cute when you’re paranoid.”
“And you’re cute when you quote Simpsons lines first thing in the morning.”
Wednesday, July 20th
“You have to see this,” Alicia grinned before dragging me to her living room. I keep forgetting how big Mikey’s house his until I actually walk around in it. “It’s so cute.”
“Cute as in a girly thing or cute as in a box of kittens in bobble hats?”
Turns out it wasn’t a box of kittens in bobble hats though I could see why Alicia thought it was cute. Luke looked less than happy about the situation he found himself in. He practically ran to me when he spotted me and dragged me out.
“What’s up with grumpy?” Gee asked, gesturing towards Luke who was beating the crap out of something on one if his games.
“Isabella made him marry her.” I couldn’t help but grin. It was just another girly thing I don’t really understand. It’s a very weird kid game though, let’s marry each other. It’s both pointless and inaccurate to what actually happens.
“Damn!” He laughed. “She’s gonna make you start wearing pink next.” Luke’s face dropped in horror.
“She can’t do that!” He protested.
“Yeah she can. She’s your wife; she can do whatever she wants to you now.”
“Gee, stop freaking him out.”
Friday, July 22nd
The first day of proper responsibility. I just secretly hope that Jepha had a shitty day because he was freaking out so much. Granted he probably didn’t but it doesn’t stop me hoping. It was pretty relaxing considering I had total responsibility if anything fucked up. Good thing I purposely didn’t book many appointments then hu? Essentially I got paid for doing very little but of course there’s no way that Jepha could ever check that out. I thought this through, most of the time with a very smug expression. I was on a day time high until Jamia text me saying her car’s in the shop so I’d have to take Luke round hers.
Fun.
Of course Gee just had to come too.
“You only wanna know where she lives so you can fuck with it,” I said to him.
“That’s not entirely true,” he said back.
“But it blatantly is though.”
“You think that’s all I care about? You disappoint me Frankie,” he mocked.
“It is though, isn’t it?” I said after a few moments silence.
“If it was why would I say?”
Sunday, July 24th
“What time do we leave tomorrow?” I asked, searching through drawers to find my passport.
“More like tonight. Flight is at four am, well there about, so we need to be at the airport for two.”
“There’s no point going to bed,” I grinned, grabbing my passport. “Oh god I forgot how weird I looked in this thing.”
“Lemme see,” Gee said. I showed him my picture and I could tell he was trying not to laugh.
“Yeah, I was going through a whole ‘dreads are cool’ stage.”
“Not as bad as mine,” he said, showing me his.
“Holy crap!” I giggled. I just couldn’t hold it in. It was on par with the embarrassing year book picture that everyone has.
“I know…” he mumbled.
Monday, July 25th
I now hate early morning flights. Ray’s hair made a nice pillow though, I was glad he fell asleep before I did otherwise I wouldn’t have gotten away with it. We were all bundled on top of each other in the departure lounge; different body parts somebody’s pillow. We must have looked like a bunch of homeless people. It was a drag getting on the plane itself. Everyone seemed drowsy and far too tired to make any conscious decisions. Mix that in with two sleeping children and you’ll see the predicament of the early morning flight.
“How long is the flight?” I asked Gee before we took off.
“Six and half to seven hours.”
Oh my god!
“Then don’t expect my full attention.”
After the safety demonstrations I fell back to sleep. Those seats do not make a good bed that’s for sure. I’d warned Luke to actually behave before we left the apartment which he did, granted he was asleep most of the time like I was but an achievement is an achievement.
The hotel was a welcome relief. My ass was completely numb! I fell face first onto the bed and refused to move, all sound being muffled by the sheet that was rising around my face. Luke nudged me pretty soon after.
So much for refusing to move…
I rolled over and slid down the end of the bed to look at him.
“There’s someone at the door,” he said. Sure enough he was right. I groaned and went to get it, Gee busying himself with something in the bathroom. A bright orange woman smiled at me with dangerously white teeth when I opened it. She’d given herself a teenage facelift (tying her hair far too tight in a pony tail on the top of her head). Her smile scared me the most though. It was kinda like that creepy axe murderer smile in horror films but a little less human.
“Hi, are you…Gerard Way?” She asked, checking the clip board that seemed to be glued to her arm.
“No. I can get him for you though.” She nodded thanks and I slouched off to get him. She deeply unsettled me. I yelled through the door to Gee before collapsing on the bed again, this time face up. I saw him run out of the bathroom through the corner of my eye and then run back when the door closed.
“Who was that?” I asked.
“Some representative of the hotel who clearly needs to lay off the sun beds!” He laughed. “I’m pretty sure if you licked her you would be cured of scurvy.”
“If you licked her I’d be worried why you were licking her,” I giggled.
“Is that a hint of jealousy I detect?” He grinned, standing in front of where my legs on the bed.
“Why would I be jealous of her? If anything she should be jealous of me,” I said, sitting up and resting on my hands.
“Then you won’t mind if I take her up on her offer?”
“What offer?”
“She asked me out for a drink and since you’re not jealous you won’t mind if I go.” I stood up on my toes so we were eye to eye. He didn’t flinch. I didn’t know what to make of it and I’d be lying to say if I wasn’t jealous then. Gee’s accidental grin gave the game away. I shoved him playfully and he stumbled backwards laughing.
“I nearly had you!”
“Yeah. Nearly. Takes a lot more than that to get me Way, you should know that by now.”
All of us spent most of the evening hanging out in our room. It’s like a mini sitcom. Ray slept across the hall and Mikey and Chloe slept next door. Seriously if we just threw in some hilariously misplaced items, a love triangle and sold it we’d be millionaires by the end of the week!
Which wouldn’t be a bad thing…
“Okay because you’re with me you get access all area passes,” Gee said, reading from a handout Dark Horse has sent up.
“Never a bad thing,” Ray grinned.
“This will enable you to see all the things that normal ticket holders don’t, like exclusive movie previews and one on one talks with the artists.”
“Movie previews as in…” Mikey pressed.
“I’m gonna be working. I don’t get to see them,” Gee shrugged.
“You’re probably not gonna be on all day. And if they really are exclusive they’ll have a late night showing,” I said, plucking ideas out of my head.
“Dude it’s not a movie theatre,” Ray smirked.
“Just an idea.”
Tuesday, July 26th
The convention building was buzzing with the kind of people most tended to avoid in school, the type of kids who hung out in random corners of the hallway and seemed to speak in their own language.
Gee was right, geeks never do grow old. They fill out and get more obsessive though. People were going nuts! Like a rockstar just walked into the building and was giving away free candy nuts.
Me, Mikey and Ray wondered around to start with, checking everything out with sweeping glances and our passes around our necks. Ray practically squealed in delight when we came across the Marvel section. We had to spend a lot of time there. It was weird to see him blend in so naturally, like he was meant to be there.
“We’re here for three days,” Mikey reminded him, basically saying ‘can we move the hell on?’
“Exactly. Means I can spend lots of time here,” he grinned.
“Why do you even like Marvel anyway? They’re all a bunch of do-gooders,” I said. The silence was shocking. All eyes in the section turned to me.
“You’ve never been to one of these before have you?” Mikey asked. I shook my head. “Then I need to explain there are a few things you never say.”
Those things are:
- NEVER insult a comic character without some kind of fundamental proof that they suck
- NEVER insult the company that made them
- ALWAYS think before you say anything cause most of the time it’s better just to shut the hell up.
Wish I’d known those sooner really.
Eventually we managed to drag Ray out of the section, not without a fight I might add, and continued to look around the place. It was bigger than I expected that’s for sure. Any bigger and I’d need a map.
I’d promised Gee I’d see him at midday-ish so I left Ray and Mikey squabbling about something to do with the Flash and X-Men and found my way to the Dark Horse section. He was sat with four other guys who were all pretty busy talking to lines people. Gee smiled when he saw me, saying something to the guy he was say next to before joining me.
“Smoke break?” He asked.
“I think you need to more than I do.”
We sat on a bench outside the venue building, the heat just the wrong side of uncomfortable and crossing over into ‘Dear god that’s hot’ territory. I was pretty sure the green paint on the bench was starting to melt in the sun cause I was getting high of some kind of fumes from near by.
“Ray really likes X-Men,” I said between puffs. Gee grinned.
“I know full well. I’ve had to put up with it since…well, elementary school.” Gee scratched his head as he tried to remember.
“Ouch,” I muttered.
“Oh come on, there’s nothing wrong with it. It’s just not to your taste.”
“Damn straight. Bunch of do-gooders…”
“You get used to it. I’ve kinda learnt to block most of it out.”
“Unless he starts on his Batman rant,” I pointed out.
“That’s true. Never offend the Dark Knight when I’m around.”
“I know Gee. I have had to listen to your fights for a while now.”
“Then feel sorry for Mikey. He’s had it pretty much since he was born.”
“Fuck!”
Gee finished at 6, whether that was the end of the day or not he was done. Luke and Chloe came back from their day with the other artist’s kids at around the same time. The place had a kind of day care service while the parent’s worked. They both seemed pretty happy, and happy as in they wouldn’t stop talking about it between themselves. We just left them to it.
Wednesday, July 27th
Talk day. Where all the major companies give speeches about their upcoming ideas. It was almost like a lecture apart from the cheering whenever a name came up.
“You don’t have to give one of these then?” I hissed to Gee.
“Not today. Have to tomorrow though. Really dreading that,” he hissed back.
“You’ll be fine. I’ll be supporting you all the way.”
“You’d better be,” he laughed.
After the talks and the numb ass creeping back the previews were finally unveiled to pass holders and employees, everyone else seeing them tomorrow. We stared in awe at the list, one movie capturing us all immediately and a lot of others.
Sin City 2.
We had to fight out way into the line to get in, I had to grab onto Mikey for fear of being swept away like a trailer in a twister. It was the only time I’d ever seen a movie where people cheered when the lights went off.
Unnecessary to say the movie was awesome and I do intend to see it several times in theatres before buying the DVD and watching the crap out of it. I just wish Gee didn’t have to go back to work so I could have watched it with him.
“Uncle Gee, look what we did!” Chloe squeaked before bouncing on the bed next to him with a piece of paper in her hand.
“Wow. I’d be worried Mikes. Looks like you got a little artist here,” he said.
“Whatever my baby wants to do. As long as she doesn’t end up as moody as you were,” Mikey smiled. I caught a glimpse of what was on the paper and it was really good. “Come on then…Science Girl, what you want for dinner?”
“Umm…pizza!”
“Alright, but don’t tell mom you’ve had it two nights in a row.”
I love Mikey’s relationship with Chloe. It’s hard to explain but they’re more best friends than father/daughter. She quickly joined Luke on the floor, who was doing something to his drawing.
“Who does that make you then?” I asked him. He looked up and smiled.
“Why Boy, cause I ask so many questions.” Gee put his hand in front of his mouth to stop himself bursting with laughter.
“Why Boy and Science Girl. I see a crime fighting duo waiting to happen,” Ray smiled. The kids beamed.
“Think you might have some competition Gee,” I grinned.
“Bring it on!”
Thursday, July 28th
The last day. The conference room had the same buzz that the whole building did on the first day. I was just nervous for Gee; I know his problem with public speaking, even though he says it’s gotten better, he still gets nervous. If I could do it for him I would, I have no problem making an ass out of myself in front of quite a lot of people, I spent most of my youth doing exactly that.
Well, that and getting arrested and avoiding juvy.
Gee was up somewhere in the middle, which is always a good place to be. He had to explain his comic and answer a few questions. Sounds pretty easy but I knew he would be incredibly nervous. To the untrained eye he looked calm but I knew him better, the slight fidget in his seat and the scratch to the back of the head was enough to tell a completely different story. I ducked out when he left the stage to find him. He was outside in the shade of a tree in the parking lot, fumbling in his pockets for a cigarette. Without thinking I gave him on of mine. He smiled and lit it with shaky hands.
“You did great,” I complemented.
“Great as in they ate me alive!” He spat.
“What the hell are you talking about?”
“Weren’t you listening to what they asked? They think its shit.”
“The guys I was sat next to didn’t. Like you said about me hating Marvel, it’s just not some people’s taste.” He paused and stared at me.
“You think so?”
“Yeah. If you created something that everyone liked you wouldn’t do what you do. It’s all about being different when so many people want to be the same.” Gee smiled and pulled me into a hug, kissing the top of my head.
“I’m glad you’re here.”
“So am I. Beats the crap out of work.”
Friday, July 29th
The flight home was during the late afternoon, which I was fucking thankful for. It did mean we’d be flying through the night but you can’t have it all. Half way through quite a few people had drifted off to sleep (there’s not a lot else to do on a plane). Gee nudged me from my book with that look in his eye.
“Are you kidding me?” I hissed. He shook his head.
“A whole week without you has driven me mad,” he growled in my ear. It was hard to suppress the shiver that coursed through me.
“We can’t,” I argued feebly.
“Why not?”
Sometimes I hate myself for giving in so easily to his requests but then he practically rips a chunk out of my neck and I can’t. I can’t hate myself and I could never hate him. Times change quick. If I’d have known what would happen in my future I wouldn’t have done so many terrible things in my past.