Everyone Learns Faster On Fire
Chapter 1: 6th November 1997
The ink was dark and dangerous. The pen was swirling desperately over the page as if it had a mind of it’s own, trying to make itself known and leave a mark on the contrasting white. So many ideas were being scribbled down and drawn out in front of its captor, each one more beautiful and inspiring than the previous, but so radically different to the next.
The one clutching the pen like a weapon set it down momentarily, only to admire his work for a second. Drawings. Hundreds of drawings blossomed in his mind, blocking out everything in the world. At this moment in time, only he, the pen, and the notebook existed. The world could have stopped and Gerard Arthur Way wouldn’t have noticed.
He would have stayed that way for hours, locked in that dark little room in his own world and thoughts until the first beams of sunrise stung his eyes the next morning, shining through the one tiny window his bedroom housed. But that scene abruptly came to an end when the artist’s younger brother opened the door and switched on the flickering light, causing the scene of relaxation and inspiration to be pulled away from him.
Gerard let out a long sigh and span around in his squeaky desk chair. “Mikey, what do you want?” He asked in an irritated tone.
Mikey Way, only just seventeen, stood there like a spare part in the doorway. He did not really know what to say to his brother. He hated interrupting him while he was at work, but this really was important. Well, important to him anyway. He had a question to ask the older sibling, but did not know how to go about it. He was afraid of being laughed at. Although Gerard was quite possibly one of the nicest older brothers in the world, it still didn’t make this situation any less embarrassing. Instead, he sat down on the unmade bed and flopped backwards so his head was resting on the hard wall.
Gerard rolled his eyes and returned to his artwork. He picked up his pen, but as soon as it touched the paper, the ideas that had been whizzing around in his brain had been completely erased from his memory. He struggled to think of the wonderful image he had in his head just moments before, but all he could think of now was why the hell Mikey had come in and interrupted him for no apparent reason.
Gerard put the pen down once more, got up from the overly cluttered desk and walked over the chaotic room to his brother. He sat down on the bed and looked at him impatiently. “Please tell me you’ve come in here for a reason and not just to divert me from the assignment I’ve got to do before Monday.”
Mikey glanced over at the guy sitting next to him for a second before returning to staring blankly at the flickering bulb hanging from the ceiling. “I wanna ask you something.”
“Mikey, whatever it is, just spit it out. I’m not gonna judge you.”
Gerard was used to sessions like this. Mikey was a bit of an introverted kid, a little like himself, and came with a lot of issues that he was too worried to talk about with other people. Although he much needed to get on with the increasing workload that was piling up on his desk, Gerard decided that solving Mikey’s worries were on top of his to-do list right now.
Little did Gerard know, this conversation would mean something a little more to him than he had first gathered. And about a month later, he would meet the one friend Mikey would speak of, and it would be a life-changing event.
The one clutching the pen like a weapon set it down momentarily, only to admire his work for a second. Drawings. Hundreds of drawings blossomed in his mind, blocking out everything in the world. At this moment in time, only he, the pen, and the notebook existed. The world could have stopped and Gerard Arthur Way wouldn’t have noticed.
He would have stayed that way for hours, locked in that dark little room in his own world and thoughts until the first beams of sunrise stung his eyes the next morning, shining through the one tiny window his bedroom housed. But that scene abruptly came to an end when the artist’s younger brother opened the door and switched on the flickering light, causing the scene of relaxation and inspiration to be pulled away from him.
Gerard let out a long sigh and span around in his squeaky desk chair. “Mikey, what do you want?” He asked in an irritated tone.
Mikey Way, only just seventeen, stood there like a spare part in the doorway. He did not really know what to say to his brother. He hated interrupting him while he was at work, but this really was important. Well, important to him anyway. He had a question to ask the older sibling, but did not know how to go about it. He was afraid of being laughed at. Although Gerard was quite possibly one of the nicest older brothers in the world, it still didn’t make this situation any less embarrassing. Instead, he sat down on the unmade bed and flopped backwards so his head was resting on the hard wall.
Gerard rolled his eyes and returned to his artwork. He picked up his pen, but as soon as it touched the paper, the ideas that had been whizzing around in his brain had been completely erased from his memory. He struggled to think of the wonderful image he had in his head just moments before, but all he could think of now was why the hell Mikey had come in and interrupted him for no apparent reason.
Gerard put the pen down once more, got up from the overly cluttered desk and walked over the chaotic room to his brother. He sat down on the bed and looked at him impatiently. “Please tell me you’ve come in here for a reason and not just to divert me from the assignment I’ve got to do before Monday.”
Mikey glanced over at the guy sitting next to him for a second before returning to staring blankly at the flickering bulb hanging from the ceiling. “I wanna ask you something.”
“Mikey, whatever it is, just spit it out. I’m not gonna judge you.”
Gerard was used to sessions like this. Mikey was a bit of an introverted kid, a little like himself, and came with a lot of issues that he was too worried to talk about with other people. Although he much needed to get on with the increasing workload that was piling up on his desk, Gerard decided that solving Mikey’s worries were on top of his to-do list right now.
Little did Gerard know, this conversation would mean something a little more to him than he had first gathered. And about a month later, he would meet the one friend Mikey would speak of, and it would be a life-changing event.