High School Epic

Heaven’s hair is long. Right down to the middle of her back, really. Normally the length of her hair wouldn’t matter, but she’s got gum in it. A lot of gum. When she refused to sing I’m a Little Teapot to a group of girls who are friends with the locker girl they held her down and put gum in her hair.

It’s also not coming out.

Heaven is hiding behind the back of this school, sitting on a wall. She’s trying really hard not to cry, but what the hell, today is not going to get any worse. Except then the Way brothers find her, and yeah, this kind of really blows.
She watches Gerard exhale a cloud of smoke, cigarette between his fingers. Mikey rolls his eyes.

“For fuck’s sake,” he says when he sees her, “They singled you out, despite your sister’s warnings.”

“They probably did it because of my sister’s warnings,” Heaven muttered darkly.

Which is true.
Everyone knows how teens are, and high school is pretty dog eat dog. If it seems as if someone can’t take care of themselves it means that they’re anybody’s meat. And her sister putting the word out like that is the equivalent of saying that Heaven is the weakest link.

She just keeps tugging at the gum, a pissed off look on her face. Gerard pats her shoulder, and it’s not really comforting, because Heaven totally thinks he’s really pretty. Even if he is a little heavier than most kids.
She kinda really digs his small white teeth.
And he’s totally touching her.

“Come on, kid,” Gerard says, and he’s pulling on her arm.

It’s fifth period, study hall, and she’s skipping class with Gerard and Mikey Way. Gerard lets go after she starts following him, Mikey walking next to her. She still picking out the gum.

Fast forward to a brick house where Gerard points her to a seat in the kitchen, and offers her a coke. She sits there sipping it from the can while he disappears. When he comes back its with scissors in his hands. She gulps and thinks about running. Instead she sits still while Gerard cuts the gum out. When he’s done it just brushes her shoulders. The cut itself looks choppy, like it’s been done in some one’s kitchen. Mikey points at her bangs, and all of a sudden she’s got scene hair.

Tarra is going to make fun of her, she already knows it.

She looks around the first floor of the house interestedly. There are alot of rumors about the Way brothers. Her favorite might be that they're vampires, because, come on, vampires can't go out in the sun. There was also the rumor about bodies in the basement, that the house is constantly decorated for Halloween, and that their dad keeps their mom locked in a closet on the second floor.

Heaven thinks its probably a good sign that there's no screaming.

She's startled when she turns to the staircase and there is a stuffed vulture--a freaking stuffed vulture, okay--is staring back at her with glass eyes. She makes a little noise in the back of her throat and jumps back. And okay, yeah, how much lamer is she going to look in front of these two kids? Gerard smiles fondly at it.

"That's Jesse," he says, "My grandma found it at a yard sale. She bought it for my mom."

"Does your mom regularly collect stuffed animals?" Heaven squeaks, eyes wide. That thing is totally fucking scary. No joke.

Gerard smiles wide, all small teeth, and Heaven wonders how anyone could ever thing he was creepy. Cause he's totally not, "No. She hates the thing. She only put it up because she didn't want to hurt my Grandma's feelings."

"Oh," Heaven nods, "That makes sense."

"She only bought it cause she knew my mom would hate it," Mikey interjects with a laugh. The two stare at Jesse fondly. She takes it back, because yes, she can totally see creepy.

They watch movies in the basement. There are, she is happy to say, no bodies. But they are, however, sitting propped up on Gerard's bed. Her legs are wrapped in a Batman comforter, and she's hiding her face in Mikeyway's shoulder. When they'd asked her if she wanted to watch The Audition she was a little suspicious, but now she's watching a subtitled horror film, and trying really hard not to seem lame when she shrieks and throws the cover over her face.

"Ew," she says, "Ewewewewewewewewewewewewew."

Torture scenes are not her favorite, and okay, yeah, that is really fucking gross. She peeks again, shudders and puts her head back under the blanket. Where the hell is Tarra when you need her?

Gerard is shaking next to her. She thinks for a minute that he's laughing at her, but then his face is shoved under the blanket with her and he says, "Its the needles, man. Fucking ew."

"Pussy," Mikey says from her left, and she smiles, shakes her head. Mikey declares it all clear. Its totally not, but she forgives him anyway.

______________________________

Heaven gets home at four thirty three and ten seconds. Tarra and Nell are already in the basement watching movies. Its nice to know that the routine doesn't stop just because she's not there. She sits down on Nell's left. It takes a minute for them to look, but she knows the exact moment because Nell bursts into laughter.

Heaven frowns and looks down at her toes, balanced on the coffee table infront of her. And yeah, okay, Heaven isn't scene enough to pull it off, but jeez, Nell, it's called tact.

"That's tactful," Tarra says from Nell's right, "What Nell means is, where are your Dickies?" She snorts with laughter and Heaven sighs. She is totally taking her house key back.

"Gerard Way cut my hair, because it had gum in it."

"How did you get gum in your hair bad enough to need it cut?" Tarra frowns and Heaven looks down again, "Oh. Oh, no, you've got to be fucking kidding."

"Nope." Heaven says irritated. It's silent for a minute. Then Heaven blows at her new bangs and the moment is ruined.

"You know," Tarra starts, and Heaven huffs, "If you say anything involving emo or wrist bands and I will fuck you up."

Tarra shrugs but her and Nell snicker at each other for the rest of the movie. Heaven goes upstairs and takes a nap. She's the best fucking babysitter ever.