The Darkest Hour

If there's one thing Mikey thought about on the day of the release, it was how he was going to react at the press conference. Dr. Pasley wasn't going to be there, and Alicia was going to be out with Lindsey for 'bride stuff'. Mikey was going to be sitting at a table with his brother and band mates, hoping and praying that none of the questions were directed at him. He'd had a really horrible dream the night before that he couldn't tell Alicia about, and it put him on edge enough to be a bit nervous on the day The Black Parade was coming out.

For a moment, Mikey felt like the cancer victim that was being taken to death on the parade. He wanted to be anywhere but behind a thin wall separating him from the paparazzi and press. He wanted to be with his saving grace, his angel, his Alicia.

"Ready?" Ray asked. His hair was in every direction, as per usual, and his tight jeans matched his Metallica shirt. Toro wore a huge, ominous smile, as if this was the best day of his life. Of course it was; the Black Parade was the next big-maybe the biggest-step in My Chemical Romance's career.

But Mikey shook his head. He was most certainly not ready for this, not today. Gerard sighed and wrapped one arm around his little brother, standing side against side to Mikey. "Mike, you'll do fine. I'm gonna be sitting right next to you. All you have to do is sit there and look pretty until someone asks you a question."

Mikey nodded and sighed. "W-what if I don't know how to answer it?" He was beyond nervous now, as anxiety started to fill his head. What if he tripped on the way to his seat? What if someone wrote a report on his horrible taste in clothes? Since when did Michael James Way care what other people thought of what he wore? Since when did Mikey care about anything other than his band and the love of his life?

Gerard gave a soft laugh quickly. "Mikey, you'll be fine. Honestly, I'm probably going to answer most of the questions, unless Frank takes some. You can just chill with Bob, since we all know just how much he hates cameras." Mikey smiled a bit at the pun on Bob's behalf, knowing full well just how amazingly right his brother was. Mikey didn't have anything to worry about; he had his best friends to back him up.

He didn't have anything to worry about, seeing as he wasn't alone and he never would be. He had his brother. He had Alicia. He had Frank, Bob, and Ray. And, even just a bit slightly less than the before mentioned, he did have Lindsey. She wasn't just there to be Gerard's girlfriend, she was there because she knew what Mikey was going through. She knew he needed support, and besides being Alicia's friend, she was also a really great friend of Mikey's.

Mikey's smile widened as he heard the band being announced. Frank, who led the group at the moment, headed out first, followed by Bob, then Mikey and Gee, and finally Ray. And honestly, Mikey sighed at just how unscary everything was around him. The press went wild when the five guys took their seats, then settled again when Gee moved his micro phone to be stationary right in front of him.

And that was it; the press was talking and Gee and Frank were answering and the Black Parade was being released in stores all across the country. Mikey no longer felt that lingering sense of anxiety, daring to come out and scare the shit out of him. All he felt was pure happiness; the album was out (as he'd thought before), he was marrying the most perfect girl in the world, and he had the best friends to share it all with.

"This question is for Mikey: what was your role in the song writing process?"

Shit. How was he supposed to answer that? And....where's the anxiety? Where's the overwhelming sense that he was going to fail, that he was going to break down? There wasn't one; he was doing just fine.

"I helped make a bunch of the decisions. In the recording process, we'd gone in with a few demos and I'd gone over them with Gee or Frank and we edited the lyrics or changed the subjects so that they'd fit in with the rest of the album." Oh, how good did he feel right then? He felt so good, like he was on top of the world. He'd handled the press with confidence, and for once Mikey wasn't afraid of loosing his control over himself.

A few questions, pictures, and fans later, and Mikey and his band was back on their way to say goodbye to the Paramour Estates. They had a flight planned later that night, all seven of them heading back to Jersey. Jem-Frank's fiance- was meeting them at the air port, and for the first time since coming to California, Mikey wasn't afraid to get on that plane. He wasn't afraid of going home, or seeing his parents. He wasn't afraid of going to see his grandmother's grave, either.

He was only afraid of one thing: in all of his issues, drugs, and fear of being Mikey Way again, he'd forgotten to pick a best man. Everyone thought Gerard would take the spot, and Mikey was almost positive he wanted that too. But...Mikey had four other best friends that could fit the bill too. If he knew his brother (and he did), Gee would be happy either way. So...maybe just because of that fact, Mikey thought he should pick Gee. He deserved it, for being such a great brother since the day Mikey was born.

As the sun set on the last day in California, Mikey smiled. Hopefully, everything was back to normal.