I'm Just the Covers on Top of Your Bed

I never loved nobody fully always one foot on the ground. And by protection my heart truly I got lost in this song. And it breaks my heart.

The summer rushed and Tim grew bigger and bigger every time Natalie closed her eyes. He had jet not figured out how to crawl and rolled around on the floor. Tim was a happy 6-month-old baby boy who loved his stuffed bunny named Mr Bunny (It had been a gift from Mikey), he laughed a lot and preferred mashed bananas before everything else Natalie would try to feed him with. It summer and it was time to get back out on tour, Rain Check was making a comeback with a new CD recorded during these last month. This record was so much difference from the last two they almost sounded like a new band. They almost were since Natalie was a new person. She picked up her brown haired boy and kissed his cheek and then placed him on her hip.

“Natalie? Are you ready?” Dylan called from other room. He was her band mate who had moved into Gerard’s room three month ago when his girlfriend had kicked him out. It was a good thing he had moved in since he had been to a lot of help.

“Yeah! We’ll be right there!” she looked around the room making sure she hadn’t forgotten anything before walking out to the hall where Dylan stood with all their bags. She gently placed Tim in his stroller and wheeled him into the elevator before heading back and helping Dylan with the bags.

“Are you ready?” Dylan asked standing in the elevator as Natalie looked at the apartment for one last time.

“Yeah,” she smiled and then closed the door. “I’m ready.”

The JFK airport was packed with people some coming and other going away just like Natalie. She was wearing sunglasses and kept her head down but it was hard hiding with that bright red hair of hers. She got recognized but kept walking towards her gate.

It’s just a plane ride, just a plain ride.

Gate 5 wasn’t that far away, she smiled as she saw her friends the rest of her band and the guys from My Chemical Romance. They too were going out on this one month summer tour. She didn’t know which bands that were playing and was happy to know that MCR was one of them.

“Hey!” She called happily as Frank ran up to give her a big hug. “I didn’t know you’d be here!”

“Well, we are!” He smiled wide and placed his eyes on little Tim. “Oh, he has grown so much since I last saw him.”

“Yeah, I swear he gets bigger every time I take my eyes of him.”

“He is adorable.” Jamia said and joined them by Frank’s side.

“Yeah, I know!”

“Can I hold him?” Frank asked.

“Of course you can. Maybe you should sit down.” They sat down on a free bench and Natalie placed Tim in his arm. Tim smiled happily as he fingered on Frank’s colorful tattoos.

“Keep and I on them would you?” Natalie said to Jamia as she met Gerard’s eyes. They hadn’t talked in such long time now but it still felt like yesterday.

“They are doing just fine!” Jamia couldn’t take his eyes of them both and sat down next to them. “Hey!” she said to Tim and Natalie turned to see Gerard standing there, with his hands in his pockets and huge grin across his face.

“Gerard.” She said softly and they hugged. “You are alright?”

“Yeah, you?”

“I’m better than alright I great!” She laughed and her joy made him laugh too. “I’ve missed you so much!”

“I’ve missed you too! But it seems like it all worked out for the best.

“Yeah, I guess it did.” He still had his arm around her and she began to tell him about the last months.

The plane ride was pleasant and they landed a few hours later on the O’Hare Chicago airport, where the tour had its first show. That night they all gathers around in the middle of the trail park all the bands. She looked around quickly and saw Bert. “No” she thought “It couldn’t be?” She looked back and there he was in all his glory.

Suppose I never ever met you, suppose we never fell in love. Suppose I never ever let you kiss me so sweet and so soft. Suppose I never ever saw you, suppose I kept on singing love songs just to break my own fall.

He looked at her and their eyes met and it was like something broke inside and she wouldn’t let. Run was her first instinct and so she did walked away left the big group and headed for her bus. Inside Timothy was sleeping and in that moment she felt like she didn’t deserve to be with him and stopped by the bus. She leaned against it and looked back at the group.

Bert saw her run and didn’t follow if she didn’t want to see him he wouldn’t force her to anything. But he guessed at some point she will be forced to talk to him he’d just wait along to see that day. Because all he wanted at that point was to hear her voice and to touch her skin again, a smile wouldn’t hurt either. His eyes turned away from the spot where she was standing; instead he looked around and saw Gerard looking at him. He couldn’t tell what he was thinking like he always used to be able to do. They all looked at each other, Bert, Gerard and Natalie all exchanged looks that didn’t give away anything.

[Past]
“BERT!” Natalie called from across the parking lot. “There you are I’ve been looking for you everywhere!” she began to run across the room with her then even longer red hair flying behind her.

“Natalie!” he smiled and stood up to catch her as she threw herself into his arms. “I’ve missed you so much!” he whispered in her ear.

“Oh, hello!” Natalie said to Gerard standing behind Bert.

“Natalie, I’d like you to meet my very good friend Gerard Way!” Bert said. “Gerard this is Natalie also a very good friend of mine!”

“Hey!” The shook hand and touched for the first time. Gerard looked her up and down liking what he is seeing.

“Well now I’m bored and thirsty!” Bert said simply not noticing Gerard looking at Natalie.

“Bert it’s eleven in the morning.” Natalie said and knew what kind of thirst he meant.

“So?” Bert said.

“Drinking at this hour? Gerard tell him that’s just stupid.”

“Eh, I could go for a bear!” Gerard said.

“Yeah, c’mon Nat why are you so un-rock star acting?” Bert said smiling and pulled his arm around her. “Admit it you want some tequila. I know you always do!”

“Hm, that’s true! But anyway I have a rule against drinking before lunch!”

“Rules are made to be broken. Always have and always will!” Gerard said.

“But what else is there to do? We haven’t got show until tonight.” Bert asked.

“Oh, I’ll come up with something! Follow me boys!” She said and walked off, they both followed with huge grins on their faces.

Those were the best days of my life and nobody seemed to really care.

[Later that night]
“I’m telling you every girl in that crowd wants to get in your pants!” Natalie said drunk.

“Yeah, Gee! What are you doing here?” Bert giggled and supported his head on his hands and burped loudly.

“You are just mental both of you!” Gerard said with a grave deal of confidence like he always got when he was drunk.

“Ahh, just cut the crap!” Bert said and emptied his glass. “I think I’ve had enough now! My bed seems very, very appealing right now!” he said and got up and fell to the ground laughing. “If I can get up!”

“Oh, c’mon Berty boy you can!” Natalie stretched her arm out and pulled him up on his feet. Natalie giggled and Gerard loved it.

“Thanks! Bye!” he walked away leaving Gerard and Natalie alone in the bus.

“So now that we are alone.” Natalie smiled. “Tell me how does in feel to be you?”

“Right now? Pretty good!” Gerard said and placed himself closer to her. Never before had he been this forward to a girl he like before.

“So Gerard Way what does it take to get in your pants?” she moved closer towards him and they were almost face to face.

“I don’t know. Why don’t you try and see?” he bit his lip.

“How about this?” she said and placed her hand on his thigh and kissed him softly. Leading him on and then pulling out.

“That’s a start!” Gerard said and kissed her.

“Yeah, how about this?” her hand wandered even higher.

“Yes!”

“What if I went like this.” she crawled up into his knee and placed each leg on the side of his thighs. Face to face she kissed him once again and bit his lip.

“That would work!” then he pressed her down ageist the couch and kissed her even more.

I’ll keep you my dirty little secret, don’t tell anyone
[End of past]

A scream from inside made Natalie leave, she disappeared into the bus. Bert looked at Gerard who waved slightly before leaving. Then Bert headed back to his bus to do something that doesn’t revolve this story but if you wanted to know he ‘borrowed’ Quinn’s Ipod and listened to Raincheck. He had no idea where his had gone, probably left it somewhere and forgotten about it.

“Bert?” Quinn called and waved in front of his head trying to gain his friends attention. Bert quickly unplugged Quinn’s headphones.

“Oh, Hi!” Bert said and smiled looking guilty. “I borrowed your Ipod, hope you don’t mind!”

“No, it’s okay. I was just wondering if you have seen Tim yet.”

“Tim?” Bert asked.

“Yeah, Natalie’s son. I was just thinking that I would go over and visit them do you want to join me?” Quinn still hadn’t given up on reuniting the old friends.

“She doesn’t want to see me!” Bert said simply.

“You don’t know that!”

“Yes, I do. She saw me earlier, she ran away then. I’m not going to force my company on someone who clearly isn’t interested in it.” Bert said and re-plugged Quinn’s headphones as Quinn left the bus and headed for Raincheck’s bus. He carefully knocked before entering. There he saw Natalie holding a crying baby boy, a baby he knew looked so much like Bert. They shared the same eye-color and mouth and well seemed to have the same mood at the moment.

Tell me lies, pretty please whispere sweet little lies and I’ll make them my own

“Hey!” Natalie said stressed and picked up an off-white stuffed bunny and handed it to her crying boy.

“Is this a bad time?” He asked.

“No, it’s just that I can stop him from crying. I don’t know why, he is not sick, not teething or hungry. He just doesn’t want to stop crying, it has never been this way before.”

“Calm down Nat!” Quinn said and took Tim out of her arms and sat down. “Schhhhh Tim.” A moment later he became quiet and looked up on Quinn. He smiled before putting his hands on Quinn’s tattoos and laughed slightly.

“Oh, you are me hero. I’m never letting you go!” Natalie joked. “He has a thing for tattoos, especially when they are colorful. But you seem to have a gift with kids.”

“Eh, I got four nieces and well kids sense you feelings and when you are stressed he get stressed too.”

“Oh, Hello Dr Phil!” Natalie joked and Quinn laughed.

“What? I know things!”

“Yeah, so are you applying for the job as my nanny? I really should get one!” Natalie joked.

“I totally am! Girls digg men with babies! That’s a fact, so whenever you need a babysitter I’m your man!”

“Thanks!” Natalie said.

“Yes, so doesn’t mama look a bit tired?” He said to Tim. “Yeah, I think so too! Should we let her get a bit of a nap? Yes I think we should!” Natalie laughed. “Say bye mama!”

“Bye! Don’t go too far away!” She called after them as they walked away. Quinn put Tim in his stroller and began to push him in front of him.

“So, I’m gonna show you what mum does for a living!”

“Hey, Quinn I didn’t know you were a dad!” Frank called from his bus and ran towards them.

“Me neither until this morning when I found him on my doorstep.”

“Need some help babysitting?”

“Sure!” Quinn said.

Hour later after a nice long nap Natalie woke up in her bunk fully rested she fixed herself before leaving to go look for Quinn and Tim. She didn’t really want to go to The Used bus but had no choice.

“Hello? Quinn are you there?” She called but got no answered and walked in. By the sound of her voice Bert looked up from his phone.

“He is not here!”

“Oh, okay.” she turned to walk away.

“Why are you so keen on running away from me?” Bert said and made her stop by the door.

“I…” She began.

“Just go. I won’t force an explanation out of you.”

“Force?” She turned around and looked at him. “You’re not forcing me to anything! I just thought you didn’t want to see me.”

“What? Of course I want to fucking see you! It’s you that don’t want to be fucking near me!”

“It’s always like this isn’t it with you!” there was venom in her voice and in her eyes. She looked at him with such hate and yet so much love.

“Well you make it so easy! Aren’t you?”

“You forgot to call me a whore. Aren’t you the one to make me fall? To watch me suffer?”

“What happened to you?”

“You! You happened to me! You left and broke me!”

“Broke you? How can say such thing? When you disappeared I couldn’t eat or sleep and then they found you and you were alright I gave you some space. Then I came to see you in prison remember! I was about to tell you I love you when I saw you with him. There in the cell he held you and promised take care of you. And well that…”

Believe me Natalie, listen Natalie. I said I missed you Natalie.

“You love me?”

“Yes, I fucking love you!” he looked her up and down as she didn’t say a word and didn’t show anything. “Natalie?”

“yes?” the tears were now close.

“I’m sorry I had no right to say that now.”

“I…”

“It’s okay if you want to run away. I won’t hate you for it.”

“Bert!”

“Yes?”

“I love you too!” she didn’t move, didn’t change her face just stood there looking back at him.

“You do?”

“Yeah, I love you so much it makes me hate you, love you! Why does this have to be so hard? Why must it hurt so fucking much?”

“It doesn’t have to be this hard!” Bert said and stood up, walking towards her.

“It doesn’t?”

“No!” he placed his hand on her cheek gently stroking it.

“Bert.” he took his hand down. “I can’t trust you and everything is just so weird right now!”

“It’s okay I wouldn’t trust myself either.”

“But…” then she kissed him, she kissed him hard with such hunger. Months had passed since last time she touched him and she had missed it. “I’m sorry!” she broke apart from him and ran away.

“Wait, you can’t just kiss me and run away!?” he yelled after her as she picked up speed.

“Truth be told simple and bold I think you are special
We can roll like a team if you know what I mean
See I’m not gonna mess around and I’m not gonna let you down
‘Cause I do love you, this I know, this I know

Money makes the world go round
People will be people always
Baby, what goes up goes down
This I know so here I go

Do you love me? Love me?
Do you love me? Love me?
Baby, do you love me?” Natalie sang on stage that night, never had she been better and enjoying the stage as much as now. Energy she didn’t even know she had made her crazy on stage acting very anti-mother-like. She had never been better, as she walked of stage she smiled seeing Gerard stand there with her baby boy. On Tim’s head he had place a pair of big ear protecting headphones. He smiled when he saw his mother all sweaty approach him. She kissed his cheek and thanked Gerard for taking care of him.

“How was it? I felt a bit rusty.”

“You were brilliant, never been better.” Gerard said and smiled.

“You are just trying to be nice.”

“No, you were amazing.” Natalie turned and saw Bert, hands in pockets. “And now I’m leaving.” He didn’t even look at Tim before disappearing.

“Natalie!” Gerard saying in a tone that meant she should run after him.

“No!” She said.

“Please, just do this for yourself and for Tim.”

“Okay, I’ll talk to him.” She said and followed still with Tim on her hip. “Bert?” she called when she followed him into a corridor.

“Yes?” He turned.

“Can I talk to you?”

“Sure!” He turned into an empty dressing room. “What’s up?”

“I don’t know where to start. I ehm…” She broke off and took off Tim’s headphones. “This is Tim, my son, our son.”

“Our?”

“Yes, I realized it wasn’t fair for you or Tim to not tell you. And Gerard has kept pushing me to tell you and well now I did.” Then she tried to run for the hills again but he stopped her at the door.

“No, you can’t just say such thing and run away. I know it’s what you do best but you got to talk to me.” He looked at Tim and smiled. “He is beautiful.”

“Yeah, he is and fragile. I can’t have you screwing him up like you’ve done it the past.”

“I understand that you can’t trust me as I said before I wouldn’t trust myself either. But I’m asking you for a chance to prove us all wrong.”

“I want nothing more but to give you a second chance but how can I know you have truly changed? How can I know you won’t break my heart?”

“You don’t. You just tae my word because I promise, I promise you that I’ll rather die then to hurt you again. I love you Natalie Salinger and I love this boy in a way I didn’t know was possible. So what you say Nat, are you let me show you and the world that I changed?”

“I guess I am!” she said and kissed him softly but still hungry. “You got one last time but if you let us down. You’ll never see us again.”

“Fair enough!” Bert said and grabbed her hand gently and dragged her out of the room.

“Where we going?” Natalie asked.

“I’m gonna show the world that you are and Tim mine!” Bert said and kissed her cheek.

Later that night two people who hadn’t shared stage in a very long time walked hand and hand out on stage to sing. The words and music was still on its best even though years, month and days had passed. The words were true and they were hard.

“Insanity laughs, under pressure were cracking. Can’t we give ourselves a new chance? Why can’t we give love one more chance?” Bert and Gerard sang as Natalie watched from backstage, Timothy in her arms and smile across her face. It’s true what they say; Happiness doesn’t come easily but when it does embrace it with arms open. You don’t know when it’s about to end.
Right in that moment Natalie finally believed she had found her happy ending but for how long would hold? Well, that’s another story.

THE END