Status: Updating while working on rewriting the earlier chapters (and deleting some stuff).
Infinite
Twenty
I wake up when Gerard leaves the bed to go to the bathroom. The alarm clock tells me it’s eight thirty in the morning, and I vaguely recall him telling me he had an interview today. As I lie there listening to the shower running and the faint sound of Gerard singing something, yesterday’s events seem almost unreal – twenty-four hours ago, I was still living with my mother. I wonder what Jamie will think, and if she and Elliott will miss me.
What if they don’t? I can’t help but think about what mom is saying about me now – how I’ve abandoned them, and how I’ve let her and Rick down.
I’m pulled out of my melancholy thoughts when Gerard exits the bathroom, dressed only in a white towel hanging low on his hips. He catches me watching him and smirks.
“Stop drooling, it doesn’t suit you.”
We leave the Ways’ house half an hour later and make our way to Manhattan in Gerard's car. MCR have to do an interview with some teen magazine, and I’m meeting up with the rest of my band. In the car, I call Noel to tell him what happened yesterday. He sounds concerned but when I tell him I’m with Gerard, he calms down a bit.
I’m not going to the meeting with the principal. Since I’m not going to live with mom anymore I don’t need her approval for dropping out of school. I probably didn't need her approval in the first place, but I guess that's what you get for trying to be honest.
It still feels a bit wrong, though – I've never thought of myself as a dropout.
Karl, Noel and Hunter are not the only ones waiting for me. Outside a small restaurant in the Village, I’m also met by Pete Wentz and a guy I don’t recognize.
“Aubrey, this is Derek Malloy. Derek, this is Aubrey, the singer.”
“And rhythm guitarist.”
“And rhythm guitarist,” Pete says, smiling.
Derek Malloy is a guy probably in his late twenties, looking like a rock star. His left ear is stretched, his lip is pierced, he’s wearing black jeans and a Led Zeppelin tee under his leather jacket. His dark brown, shaggy hair is probably styled with five different hair products to get that look. But he really looks like a nice guy.
His appearance doesn’t explain who he is, though.
“Nice to meet you,” he says, smiling and shaking my hand. I give Pete a confused look. Pete realizes my question and says:
“Oh right, Derek’s your manager.”
Famous people have managers. Not famous people from Madison, New Jersey certainly don’t have managers.
Despite being homeless, this day hasn’t turned out half as bad as I thought it would.
What if they don’t? I can’t help but think about what mom is saying about me now – how I’ve abandoned them, and how I’ve let her and Rick down.
I’m pulled out of my melancholy thoughts when Gerard exits the bathroom, dressed only in a white towel hanging low on his hips. He catches me watching him and smirks.
“Stop drooling, it doesn’t suit you.”
We leave the Ways’ house half an hour later and make our way to Manhattan in Gerard's car. MCR have to do an interview with some teen magazine, and I’m meeting up with the rest of my band. In the car, I call Noel to tell him what happened yesterday. He sounds concerned but when I tell him I’m with Gerard, he calms down a bit.
I’m not going to the meeting with the principal. Since I’m not going to live with mom anymore I don’t need her approval for dropping out of school. I probably didn't need her approval in the first place, but I guess that's what you get for trying to be honest.
It still feels a bit wrong, though – I've never thought of myself as a dropout.
Karl, Noel and Hunter are not the only ones waiting for me. Outside a small restaurant in the Village, I’m also met by Pete Wentz and a guy I don’t recognize.
“Aubrey, this is Derek Malloy. Derek, this is Aubrey, the singer.”
“And rhythm guitarist.”
“And rhythm guitarist,” Pete says, smiling.
Derek Malloy is a guy probably in his late twenties, looking like a rock star. His left ear is stretched, his lip is pierced, he’s wearing black jeans and a Led Zeppelin tee under his leather jacket. His dark brown, shaggy hair is probably styled with five different hair products to get that look. But he really looks like a nice guy.
His appearance doesn’t explain who he is, though.
“Nice to meet you,” he says, smiling and shaking my hand. I give Pete a confused look. Pete realizes my question and says:
“Oh right, Derek’s your manager.”
Famous people have managers. Not famous people from Madison, New Jersey certainly don’t have managers.
Despite being homeless, this day hasn’t turned out half as bad as I thought it would.