August

It was the first time Pete and I had hung out in a while and we were skipping class for it. Either I was going to be missed and would have a giant search party looking for me, or I would be safe sailing. Pete bet the first one then took me out the back doors during lunch.

"Sorry man I haven't been able to hang out with you." Pete said as he jumped a fence and came around to open it for me; I patiently waited holding the McDonald's bag.

"Why? You have a life…" I shrugged while watching a stray cat run by, he laughed a little as I shook myself out of it, "And it's not like things would be like normally." I pointed out. We both became still as we looked at the destination.

"We were little creeps when we were younger. You know that?" Pete said sounding absolutely shocked as we stood in the middle of a graveyard.

"You're the one who found it!" We both laughed and I tipped my head thinking of the summer we 'ran away'.

It was a still and warm summer night when we wanted to play a game so we came here to play hide and seek before our triumphant return home. Yeah, I remember that too, Pete had just read The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, so he had all these ideas of treasure. The two of us lasted about half a day away from home before our grow-spurt bodies told us to go home and eat something.

"Do you remember the one head stone?" He nodded at my horrible description, "It was… Sir McGaven the VI!"

"The gallant coal miner. Oh yeah…" I did a laugh from the gut and Pete was off to find it, "We'll party with him."

"I bet he loves McDonald's."

"The birds too."

"Indeed."

Pete sat down first on a worn marker, crossing a leg over his knee he took his burger from me and I munched on my chicken nuggets. A few crows went by and the stray cat chased them for a while, Pete occasionally threw a fry at them. Not much was said, but a few clumps of grass were playfully thrown at each other before more words came.

"What's up Bren?" Pete stared at me sideways.

"Wha- It's noting." I reassured and quickly took a bundle of fries.

"I think that's a sad face." He mocked his mother's voice when she was trying to find something out. I couldn't help but chuckle.

"Fine… before I tell you anything- I've stopped doing it, and Dr. Hancock knows too so…. But promise not to yell at me?" I asked through a mouthful of food as he nodded intensely.

"There really isn't anything that can make me freak out at this stage, you know."

"I've been cutting myself."

"Bren-" The darkness of his eyes lightened to the normal glimmer, "You're ok now?"

"Yeah. I'm o-k." I went to reading the tombstone next to him and felt a giant weight off my chest.

My heart jumped when I took the final step to stopping myself from cutting. Pete would even more so check up on me, plus I was totally open with my best friend again. While I let it sink in the baby started kicking like mad and Pete seemed to notice.

"Whoa! I saw that!" He bounced a little on the headstone.

"It does that sometimes," I muttered as I pressed on the area it was kicking, "Gah! Why are you touching me?" He extended his arm and poked at my belly.

"I don't know, it just looks so cool…" I sighed as he continued to manhandle my abdomen.

"Great, let me guess you want one too?"

"No, I'll pass." Pete did one more circle around and then pulled his hand back, to pick his phone out of his pocket, "Hm…Uh huh…" he mumbled as he texted someone, "Ashlee's hiding in a stall."

"Why's that?" I knitted my brow together and snort came from his end as he opened the next one.

"Apparently she hit a girl 'cause she was talking shit about you." He said ever so casually.

"I say we go and pick her up." I bit my lip with high hopes I could spend the rest of my afternoon with the girl that was just too nice to me.

"It's like the middle of third block. We can't just go back now!" He protested.

"Please Pete?" I released my teeth and let my lip jut out.

"Fine…" Pete sighed out, "I'll text her and we can go."

Seconds later and we were heading back to school. It was risky, but she had to escape too, seeing as how that place seemed to be a hellhole for everyone. We parked in the gas station by the school and waited for Ashlee to arrive. It took her a while, although I think it was because she didn't want to get beaten by any girls still left in the locker room. What took us even longer was deciding where to go next. The weather was more humid then what it had been in weeks and it was partly cloudy.

"How about someone's house?" Ashlee asked.

"No, my mom's home, Brendon's dad might be home and yours-" Pete drove past a couple of small businesses.

"Right… both my mom and dad."

"Go back!" I waved my hand out the window, "Yeah! Back there! Turn. Turn!" They both must have thought I was crazy but I heard the sweetest sound by a local playground: oldies.

The song changed by the time we stopped there and we noticed that the house next to the park had a Grandpa grilling something for his wife in the backyard. Piano and the sound of trumpets with sweet guitar was playing as the swings swayed perfectly in time.

"Stop the car!" I got out and stood in awe. This had to be one of the more perfect scenes.

"Dude…" Pete shook his head as he got over his recent panic attack I gave him.

"I know this song!" Ashlee bobbed her head to the beat and we both sat down on the swings. Pete placed himself on the end of the metal slide. I would have gotten up to dance but it hurt my feet and I more or less waddled anyways.

"This is nice," I kicked off my neon colored Nikes, "How about we do this tomorrow?"

"Sure, just like we'll go to California on Friday too." Pete cracked a smile and brushed a hand over his face.

"PEZ?" Ashlee asked opening her purse and holding up a pink PEZ dispenser with a penguin on top. She glanced over at her boyfriend grinning.

"Sure. What else do you have in there?" I said popping a sugary tablet in my mouth, she looked in, shrugged, and we chuckled, "I think we should go to New York instead."

"I think he was just joking, Brendon." She pointed out and was totally confused.

"Eh, I suppose we could. Some-- day…" He got up and started walking around to the monkey bars, "Yeah." Pete finally agreed confidently, "We'll go after you graduate."

"Ok, I think I can live another year of high school."

"Hey guys," Ashlee hit my shoulder and waved the other hand at Pete, "A cop car is stopping here."

We all froze as we watched it drive by and my neck hair stood with every word I heard on his radio. When the cop car finally drove by oldies came back into sound only it sounded sped up compared to the last 15 seconds of my life.

"Should we go?" She questioned nervously.

"No, they usually go by once and if they ignore you it's fine." I answered back.

"Yeah, and no one knows who we are in this neighborhood. We should be safe." Pete walked behind Ashlee and started rocking the chains back and fourth. She sighed and the two started being, well, couple-y. They didn't mean it, but the way they looked in each other's eyes said it all.

"Fuc-" The three of us snapped back into reality seeing the car come back by and slow down, "Really?"

"Bren, shut up." Pete scolded from the side of his mouth when the police officer got out of the car and walked towards us. Unfortunately, I knew this one, he made sure that the protesters and as close as you can get to press in this town, stayed away from me. So far I had only made the National Inquirer.

"Brendon Urie?" He half called, but half warned something bad was going to happen. I felt my cheeks get warm and I mouthed 'sorry' to my friends, "You should be in school," Tell me something I don't know, "Your parents are worried about you."

"Sorry sir." The officers latched a finger around a belt loop and gave me a sympatric stare.

"Come with me," He motioned with his head and turned a blind eye to the other two. We started walking and smiled at the old couple enjoying their late lunch outside, "Ain't that nice."

"Bye Bren." Pete said in a small voice.

"Bye…" Ashlee yelled as I got further away.

The officer dropped me off and I was in major trouble...and they proceeded to yell and ground me. Apparently, Ben was the one who came crying to my mom and dad when I didn't walk over to the middle school to wait with him for Kira. We were going to go get our haircuts, I love how people tell me things. Honestly B should have been relieved when I didn't show. His disgrace of a brother showing up probably would have gotten the crap beaten out of him the next day at school. He's a sissy and is scared of being left alone, but trust me he doesn't know what it's actually like to really be alone.

Harsh, yet that's what they get for the treatment to me. Although, from what I've hear Ben still loves me…I'm a little sad I didn't get to see Kira though, surprising for me. Didn't I say my day was almost perfect?

Ruined.

Again.UnBelievable.