I Never Told You What I Did for a Living

I followed the directions Gerard had given me on the phone exactly, and wound up in the parking lot in front of an apartment building that looked badly in need of repair. I left my school bag in the car, wishing that I'd taken the time to pack before I'd left home. When I knocked on the door number that he'd told me, a strange guy opened it. He was tall and scrawny, wore glasses, and his brown hair fell gracefully across his forehead. He didn't speak, just stared, making me squirm under his gaze.

"I must have the wrong address," I mumbled awkwardly, beginning to turn away.

"You Lily?" he asked.

"Yeah," I turned back and he nodded slightly.

"Gerard's inside," he disappeared, leaving the door open for me.

I entered the dark apartment and closed the door. It was furnished simply and had no real style to it, but it still felt cozy. I followed the boy, who couldn't have been much older than twenty, until I saw Gerard sitting on the couch.

"Hey, Lily," he smiled when he saw me, and I grinned back. "Did Mikey introduce himself?"

I shook my head slightly.

"Then allow me. This is my little brother, Mikey. He's staying here for the week, so it looks like for the time being you've got the couch. Sorry, but there's just no arguing with that kid."

"That's no problem," I assured him. "I'd be fine sleeping on the floor if I had to. Thank you so much for letting me crash here."

Mikey left the room and Gerard motioned for me to sit next to him. "Tell me what happened," he prodded gently.

"My mother refuses to trust me. She actually forced me to show her my wrists because she thinks I'm cutting myself. You should have seen the look on her face when she saw that I wasn't. I think she was dissappointed."

"Seriously? I thought it seemed like you and your mom got along," he shook his head a little and slung an arm around my shoulders.

I sighed. "We sort of put on a show around people. We don't talk, and when we do we only scream at each other. I'm not the kind of daughter she wanted."

"Come on, don't say that. I bet she's looking for you right now."

"Yeah, right. She'd only want me back so she'd be able to bitch at me for running away," the tears I'd refused to let fall earlier sprang into my eyes. I drew in a shaky breath as the first few fell and raced silently down my cheeks. Gerard wiped them away and kissed the top of my head. I leaned against him and sobbed quietly into his shoulder. After a few minutes, I straightened. I was through crying over my mother.

Mikey came back into the room and handed me a small glass. I gave him a grateful look and he smiled.

"You look like you need it."

I glanced in the cup and sniffed the amber liquid it contained. I downed the contents in one swallow, then coughed in alarm as I felt it burn.

"Not a rum drinker, huh?" he laughed lightly.

"Not really," I admitted. I wasn't the first time I'd had alcohol, but before I'd stuck to wine coolers and other drinks that kept the alcohol tasteless.

We ordered take out from a nearby pizza place and ate in front of the TV. Mikey turned out to be a lot of fun, and was treating me like a little sister. I'd never known what it was like not to be an only child, but once I'd met Mikey I wished that I'd had siblings.

"Well," he announced once we'd finished eating as he stood and brushed his hands off on his jeans. "I'm off."

"Where are you going tonight?" Gerard asked, though it was obvious that he didn't much care.

"There's a live show at a club downtown, and after I'll probably go hang out with Ray and Frankie."

"He's really into the local music scene," Gerard explained to me. "And Ray and Frankie are our friends. You'll meet them soon enough."

I nodded. "Have fun, Mikey."

"You, too. But not too much fun," he added, winking mischeviously.

"You've got nothing to worry about," I assured him, catching Gerard's eye. "I have nothing but good intentions."

"It's not you I'm worried about."

"Didn't you say you were leaving?" Gerard asked.

After Mikey left, Gerard lit a cigarette. He took a long drag, then noticed me watching him.

"Sorry, does this bother you?" he asked as he breathed out the smoke that had filled his lungs and reached for an ashtray to put it out.

"No, it's okay. I'm used to it. I'm around smokers all the time."

"I'm going to quit," he vowed.

"Good. But for now, it's not a big deal. Don't worry about it."

Before going to bed, Gerard and I decided to watch a movie. I browsed through his collection of DVDs, and decided on a gruesome slasher flick that happened to be one of my favorites. Of course, it also gave me an excuse to cuddle up closer to him during scary parts. We sat on the couch together, wrapped in a blanket, but neither of us saw the end of the film. We both fell asleep before it ended.

I thought at one point that I heard Mikey chuckle, then felt a blanket being tucked around me. Instead of opening my eyes, I just adjusted my head on Gerard's chest, inhaled his scent, and went back to sleep.