A True Friend Stabs You in the Front

Go, go Power Rangers! Mighty Morphin Power Rangers!
The Power Rangers theme song echoed throughout the living room, where I was sprawled out carelessly on the couch, singing along to the song quietly.
It was a Saturday afternoon. Mom and dad had gone out to the supermarket. My sister was still sleeping and I had absolutely no intention in waking her up.
I liked being the only one up while my parents were gone.
My mind was well focused on those six power rangers, fighting their way to victory.
I know, I know. Why was a sixteen year old girl such as myself watching Power Rangers?
Call me a kid, but I still watched cartoons. I mean, who says that cartoons are just for kids? They're also for teenagers who aren't at all thrilled about the idea of growing up. Like myself, of course.
My sister Lizzy seemed to think differently, though. She was eighteen and a senior in high school. She couldn't wait to go to college just so she could move out of the house. That girl was just desperate to grow up. Besides, her reputation as most popular girl in school couldn't be ruined by watching some kiddie cartoon.
She was dead set on making her senior year the best year in high school. I was actually sort of jealous for her having only a year left. I still had two, unfortunately.
Anyways, I guess Lizzy wasn't as bitchy as her friends were. I mean, they were really bitchy. They were the kind of people who talked shit about the other cliques in school, and of course, the goths and emos were the main ones on their list of humiliation.
Lizzy wouldn't really avoid me in school or anything, but she wouldn't exactly strike up a conversation with me either.
That didn't bother me, though. I was cool with that. I had my own crowd now.
The emos and goths were really nice people. They weren't intimidating in any way and they welcomed anyone into their circle of friends. The problem was, I was the only one willing to enter their clique, even though I wasn't emo or goth.
I was just plain ol' Sam Hayes. No stereotype included.
I continued watching the cartoon absent-mindedly, until I suddenly heard noises. It was coming from outside of my house.
I grabbed the remote control, muting the volume on the TV, listening intently. They were definately voices. I slowly slid off the couch, tossing the remote on it.
I then walked up to the front window, peeking out behind the satin curtains. On the porch stood three boys, two who I recognized being Gerard and Mikey.
They were in a circle, talking amongst themselves. From what I could make out, they were debating whether to knock on the door or not.
I laughed quietly to myself, shaking my head. I then walked over to the front door and opened it.
The boys wheeled around quickly to face me, and I gave them a smile.
"Hey," I greeted, shifting my weight to my right leg, my hand behind the door.
Mikey and Gerard smiled widely. So did the boy I've never seen, who stood next to them. His hair immediately caught my eye. It was styled afro-like. His clothes sort of matched the clothes Mikey and Gerard wore: ripped jeans and a casual black shirt. I noticed Gerard's hair wasn't as tangled as yesterday. It looked pretty decent, but I hardly paid attention to that. His face was gorgeous enough to make someone not even notice the messy black hair.
"Hey Sam," Mikey greeted with a small wave.
"How'd you know we were out here?" Gerard asked.
I shrugged. "I have a sixth sense."
They eyed me weirdly.
I let out a laugh. "I heard you guys talking out here."
They all nodded, suddenly realizing the joke.
"I'm Ray," The afro kid said, sticking his hand out in my direction.
I took it, and smiled. "Hey Ray."
"So, whatcha doing?" Mikey asked, stuffing his hands in his pockets.
"Just watching TV," I replied plainly with a shrug.
"Oh," Gerard said. "We actually came here to ask you something."
I furrowed my eyebrows. "Shoot."
Gerard bit his lip and looked over at his brother and big afro Ray.
"Um, we have a band and....we're gonna practice in a little while, at my place. We thought maybe you'd like to...watch?" Gerard's attempt to get his question out was funny. I just cleared my throat, maintaining my face light.
"Oh yeah. Mikey told me about being in a band," I replied with a smile. "Sure, I'll go."
Gerard sighed in relief and Mikey clapped his hands. Ray just grinned.
"Great! So uh, you planning on wearing that or....?" Mikey began saying, eyeing me up and down amusingly.
I looked down at myself, realizing he meant my pajamas. They weren't very exposing. If they were, I wouldn't still be standing there in front of them.
I was wearing a white t-shirt and loose pajama pants, which had flower prints all over.
My cheeks went red. "Hang on. I'll go change."
They all nodded and just stood there.
I laughed a little. "Well, come in. Don't have to wait for me outside," I said, shaking my head.
They chuckled. "Oh, right," Gerard said.
Gerard, Mikey and Ray made their way inside my house, as I stepped aside to let them through.
Ray whistled as he looked around, taking in everything. "Nice place."
"Thanks," I replied bluntly. "I'll be down in a sec," I told them, before I darted upstairs to my bedroom.
Once I was in, I quickly removed my pajama pants, throwing them carelessly on the floor. I then grabbed the nearest pair of jeans, which were thrown over my computer chair, slipping them on.
While I was putting on a striped short-sleeved shirt, my door suddenly creaked open and my eyes widened. I had thought it was one of the guys.
I then sighed in relief seeing that it was just Lizzy. She had a look of confusion on her face, as she watched me changing. She took another step into my room.
"Sam, who are those guys downstairs?" She asked curiously, crossing her arms.
"Gerard, Mikey and Ray," I replied plainly, as I slipped on my purple heart vans.
"Are those names supposed to mean something?" She asked, raising an eyebrow at me, while I quickly brushed my hair in front of my mirror.
I snorted. "No. They're just some guys I met yesterday. Well, with the exception of Ray. I just met him now."
"And you're going out with them?" She asked in disbelief.
"Uh huh," I replied with a shrug.
"Sam, that is so not like you. I thought you hated going out."
I rolled my eyes. "Lizzy, aren't you supposed to be taking your beauty rest or something?"
She scoffed, flipping her straight hair back. "Sam, don't change the subject."
I stared at her weirdly. "Since when do you care who I hang out with? It's not like it's your business, anyways."
"But Sam. You barely know them," She began saying, and I was surprised at how concerned she was being. That was definitely a first.
"Not true," I protested. "I know plenty."
"Like what?" She smirked.
I sighed. "Seriously, Lizzy. They're waiting for me. It's rude to leave them waiting so long."
"Just tell me one thing you know about them," She pressed.
I rolled my eyes. "They're in a band. That's actually why I'm going to Mikey and Gerard's. They want me to see them practicing," I replied with a shrug.
"Huh," She said. "Well, suit yourself. They're your friends."
"Exactly. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go see a band practice," I said with a grin, as I walked past her, out the door of my room.
"Oh! And if mom and dad get back, just tell them I'll be back by seven or something," I said, as I darted down the stairs.
"Fine," She called, walking back to her room.
The boys watched as I came down.
"I'm ready," I said, panting a little as I reached them.
"That you are," Gerard said in a low voice, which made me stare at him weirdly for a brief moment.
"Okay, let's go then," Mikey said, opening the front door. Once we were all out on the porch, I locked the door behind me and followed the boys, as we made our way to Mikey and Gerard's.
We walked along the sidewalk; Gerard on my right and Mikey on my left, and Ray next to Gerard.
"So, who was that back there?" Mikey asked. "Your sister?"
I nodded. "Yep."
"Does she have a boyfriend?" Ray asked, seemingly interested and I looked at him weirdly.
"You interested in my sister, Ray?" I asked with a laugh.
He shrugged. "She's hot."
I laughed again. "She keeps talking about this guy she's been seeing. I don't know if they're serious or not." I shrugged.
"Aww. Too bad. You think she'd go for me?" He asked with a grin.
I bit my bottom lip. He wasn't nearly her type. But I couldn't be mean. "Um, yeah. Who knows," I said with a shrug.
He grinned wider. Mikey and Gerard just rolled their eyes.
Two minutes later, we arrived at Mikey and Gerard's house. Mikey pushed the front door open and we all went in, me being the last one.
Their house was built like mine, but of course, everything inside was different. The walls were a blue color; most of the furniture were dark and looked ancient. There were many portraits hung on the walls and most of them were of Mikey and Gerard in their early days.
"Come on, basement's this way," Gerard said to me and he took my arm, leading me through the living room and the kitchen.
While passing the kitchen, I saw a woman sitting at the table. She had her head down, reading a newspaper and a coffee cup was on top of the table next to her.
When she heard us coming through, her head shot up and her eyes landed on us. She put the newspaper down, and noticed me; a smile appearing on her face.
She looked like she was probably in her mid 40's. Her eyes were a dark color and her hair was short and blond.
"So this is Sam?" She asked the boys, her eyes on mine.
"Yep. Sam, this is my mom Donna," Gerard introduced, his hand still on my arm.
I smiled at her politely. "Hi."
"Hello," She greeted. "So, Mikey tells me you had a little mishap with my mailbox yesterday?"
My cheeks burned. Mikey actually told his mom I walked into the mailbox?!
She laughed, noticing my embarrassment. "It's okay, hun. Embarrassing things happen on a daily basis in this house," She said with a wave of her hand.
"Yeah, like with Mikey and his little toaster incident," Gerard mumbled in my ear.
Mikey scoffed. "That was a mistake and could happen to anyone, okay?!"
"Yeah, Mikey. I'm sure lots of other people stick forks into their toasters," Gerard said sarcastically with a roll of his eyes.
I snickered. "You stuck a fork in a toaster, Mikey?" I asked.
"It wasn't on purpose," He mumbled. "Like I said, mistake."
Ray, Gerard and Donna laughed. "Mikey, honey, there are no mistakes with you. But don't worry, I love you just the same," She replied, and that only made the boys laugh louder.
Mikey crossed his arms, frowning.
"Well, I see you boys brought her to watch you practice," Donna said, quickly changing the subject. She smiled at me. "They're very good, Sam."
"I'm sure they are," I said, smiling back.
"Good? Psh, we're fucking fantastic," Gerard said with a sly grin.
Donna rolled her eyes. "I guess modesty is only for some people."
I laughed.
"You guys want anything to drink?" She then asked.
We all shook our heads.
"Okay, then. If you guys need anything, I'll be in the living room," She said, as she stood up and walked past us. She smiled warmly at me before disappearing off into the living room, with her coffee cup.
"She's nice," I stated.
Gerard grinned at me before pulling on my arm and continued leading the way to the basement. We soon reached a door, and Gerard opened it. We all walked down the steps until reaching the basement. It was very commodious and looked like another living room. There were two couches, a TV, an old stereo and an old fridge.
Musical intruments were each placed in the center of the basement.
"So is it just you three in the band?" I asked.
"No, there are two more. They'll be here any minute," Mikey answered, then pointed towards the old green three-seat couch that was up against the wall. "You can sit if you want."
I nodded and walked over to the couch, sitting myself down. I placed my hands on my lap.
"So what's the name of the band, anyways?" I asked, while Gerard fumbled with the microphone and Mikey placed the strap of a bass guitar over his shoulders. Ray picked up a guitar, also throwing the strap over his shoulders, and started strumming a few chords.
"My Chemical Romance," Gerard said with a wide grin.
I smiled. "Original," I stated. "I like it."
"You do? It was my idea to name the band that, ya know," Mikey said, with a proud smile on his face.
"Cool. How'd you come up with it?" I asked curiously.
"I got it off a book I saw back when I worked at Barnes & Noble. It sounded pretty cool and the guys all liked it so it just kinda stuck, I guess," Mikey answered.
"That's awesome, Mikey," I said. "I can't wait to hear your songs."
"As soon as those two lazy asses get here, we'll play some for ya," Ray said.
I nodded and leaned back on the old couch.
"Hello children," A voice suddenly said, making us all turn our heads towards the basement door.
It was a boy, but he seemed a bit older than the others. He came down the stairs with a grin.
"Ohh, we have an audience!" He said as soon as he saw me.
I smiled crookedly and stayed silent.
"Bob, that's Sam. She's from the hood," Mikey said, making his voice sounding a lot like a gangster's voice.
Bob shook his head. "Stop with the gangsta voice, Mikey. It doesn't suit you at all," He said with a laugh. Then he turned to me again. "I'm Bob. Drummer of the best underground rock band from Jersey."
I smiled again. "Nice to meet you."
"Likewise," He said with a wink. Then he spun around, walking towards the drum set and sitting himself down.
I remembered Mikey having said that there was another guy, so I assumed that was the reason they hadn't started yet.
Gerard began making funny noises into the mic, making me laugh like an idiot. He was hilarious. All of them were, in fact.
The only guy missing was the one I hadn't met yet.
And soon, when we all heard the basement door opening, the last guy had finally arrived. He made his way down the steps. I couldn't see his face, since it was buried behind the hood of his black hoodie.
He jumped over the two last steps, and when he touched the ground, he pulled off his hood and that's when my eyes became transfixed on him.
My eyes widened and my mouth opened a little. It was Frank.
The same Frank from the treatment center. So he was in the band, too?
Soon, it hit me. Of course I had heard of Gerard before even meeting him. Frank had mentioned him to me. I felt stupid for not realizing that Gerard was the Gerard that Frank mentioned before.
Frank's eyes then laid on me and a smirk appeared on his face.
He didn't seem at all surprised by seeing me there. Or was he just hiding it?
"Finally, dude! We thought you weren't coming! Why'd you take so long?" Gerard asked, and Frank's head snapped towards him.
"I was taking a smoke," He replied with a shrug.
He walked over to a guitar that was leaned against the wall, pulling the strap over his shoulders.
I continued staring at him, straightening my face out so it didn't look so stupidly confused.
"Hey Frank, did you even notice we have company?" Mikey asked, pointing to me.
He looked up from his guitar. "Yeah."
"That's Sam. She's a friend and she's gonna watch us practice," Gerard said, fixing his microphone so that it stood to his level.
"We've met," I said quietly and saw Frank smirking.
Everyone looked at me then Frank. "Where?" Gerard asked confusingly.
"Therapy," We both answered in unison.
Mikey snickered. "That's so romantic."
Frank punched Mikey on the arm, and he let out a squeal.
"Sam, you go to therapy?" Gerard asked, intrigued.
I shrugged. "I have no choice. My mother makes me."
He chuckled. "That sucks."
"Immensly," I answered.
Frank smirked at me once again before strumming the chords on his guitar. "Are we gonna play, or what?" He asked.
"Yeah, let's do this shit. Sam wants to hear us play!" Gerard yelled into the microphone, making me laugh again.
Everyone was in their individual places and I watched closely.
"This one's called Demolition Lovers," Gerard said, giving me a wink. And right then, they began playing the first chords. The music started out slow and then became more rapid, until finally, all of them began getting into the mood of the song. My eyes went wide as Gerard's singing voice met my ears.
I was stunned. Utterly stunned.
His voice was amazing. Frank played his guitar with so much amount of energy, it was crazy . Ray headbanged throughout the entire song. Mikey had his head down as he played his bass, totally concentrated; and Bob banged his head along with the noise that his sticks made against the drums.
It was almost an emotional thing to watch, because looking at those five boys playing in front of me, I could tell that they knew exactly what they were doing. They were good. Really, really, really good.
After they finished, Gerard threw his head back, letting all his black hair fall into his face. He then took a deep breath and exhaled, dropping the mic on the ground for a dramatic effect.
My mouth gaped open, as I sat there, motionless.
"What'd you think?" Mikey asked curiously, seeing the look on my face.
I blinked and quickly regained my posture. I grinned widely.
"It was......incredible," I answered, trying to think of another word that could perfectly describe their performance. "Insanely amazing."
All of them suddenly grinned, glad to hear my response. Even Frank was grinning.
"You really liked it?" Gerard asked, clapping his hands like a five year old.
"Are you kidding? That was fucking fantastic! I am so stunned right now," I replied with a laugh.
"Yay. Sam loves us!" Mikey squealed, high-fiving Gerard.
"You know what that means, don't ya?" Bob said with a big grin.
"What?" Gerard asked, looking at him.
"We got ourselves a groupie!" Bob answered, laughing. And everyone joined in; even Frank.