Christmas Payback

Gerard Way sighed, adjusting his scarf as it hung loosely around his thin neck. Moving some of his shaggy black hair out of his hazel eyes, he tiredly leaned back in his chair. For a moment, he thought he heard Brian's voice outside the office they were currently in. Looking around, Gerard couldn't really imagine his manager sitting in this office the whole day; it just seemed so strange and out of place for him. White curtains, with a dark red carpet covering the floor, a boring wooden desk with some fitting chairs, and of course, as usual in these record buildings, the bigger chair was the most comfortable one in the whole office, and the one that resided behind the desk itself.

Frank, not waiting to be invited, had already taken over the chair and was having a grand time spinning around and around on it, giggling as a maniac, as he was apparently enjoying himself. Several pens, that were organized before, were now lying around the surface of the desk, and the papers were scattered. Gerard sighed and shook his head as Frank's giggle broke the silence in the room. The rest of the band members were sitting on the couch, trying to catch some sleep while resting their heads on each other's shoulders.

Gerard smiled tiredly and rubbed his tired eyes, stifling a yawn as he stood up from the chair, positioned in front of the desk. Walking towards the door, the other members of the band didn't move as he looked in the hallway, looking for Brian. He shrugged, allowing the mutter under his breath that sounded something in the nature of 'coffee' before he walked out of the, rather plain and boring, office.

With his hands shoved deep in his pockets Gerard walked through the hallway, ignoring the people walking past him with papers or books pressed against their chests. The white walls blinded Gerard for a moment, causing him to look down at the floor; it wasn’t a surprise that he wasn’t really looking where he was walking. The floor was much more interesting than boring hallway walls, anyway. However, Gerard soon learned that it was a big mistake to pay more attention to the carpeting, when he suddenly found himself colliding with someone as he turned a corner. With am “oomph!” of discomfort he fell back, and judging from the other sounds that reached his ears he had to guess that the other person had also fallen.

“Ow...hey there, you okay?” A familiar voice broke through the temporary haze of confusion and discomfort that Gerard was experiencing, and a hand reaching out to help him up. Gerard frowned, recognizing the voice a little, but he didn't manage to place it immediately. Accepting the help, he nodded and pulled himself from the ground.

“No, I need coffee,” Gerard muttered under his breath, trying to get some of the wrinkles out of his usual black clothes, which was one of the things that made him stand out in the crowd of the hallway. It didn’t matter; most of the people walking here or there were ignoring them, anyway, being wrapped up in their own jobs.

“Well, the coffee here sucks, so I guess you’re a little out of luck, there,” the person laughed. Gerard yawned and rubbed his eyes, nodding a little, agreeing with what the person in front of him said even though he still couldn't figure out who it was.

“Ugh, tell me about it. I tried some when I first got here, and it almost made me throw up,” Gerard pouted, finally fixing his eyes on the person in front of him. He paused for a moment, allowing himself the belief that his eyes weren’t deceiving him, before his lips found themselves forming a large grin. He broke out in a small chuckle and shook his head. “Of all people,” he muttered, “I have to collide with this guy.”

Billie Joe grinned and nodded in answer to Gerard's reaction, not really surprised by it. Crossing his arms in front of his chest, Billie leaned against the white wall and looked on in amusement as Gerard yawned again, before he fixed his eyes back on the punk god—though Billie absolutely hated when Gerard called him that. (Of course, for what other reason would Gerard call him that in the first place, if it didn’t annoy him?)

“So...why are you here?” Billie asked, breaking the silence between the two friends. Gerard looked confused for a moment, not really understanding the question at first—he really needed some coffee; his brain wasn’t entirely functional without it in the morning, he’d come to accept and realize.

“What?” Gerard asked, frowning at Billie Joe “Oh, that. Um...I don't really know,” he admitted sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck in an uncomfortable manner. Billie raised an eyebrow at Gerard for a moment before he spoke.

“You...don't know?” He asked slowly, not sure if he should believe this answer. He too might not have drank any coffee all day, but that sounded a little to absurd in his ears.

“Yeah, well...” Gerard shrugged, not really knowing how to explain it. “Brian called us and told us to come here as soon as possible, so we did. Nothing serious, I think it’s something about some upcoming tour dates, or something. But he isn’t here, so now we're just waiting in his office, I guess.”

“Oh, so the hallway is his office?” Billie smirked.

“You know what I mean,” Gerard rolled his eyes good naturedly, stretching his arms and yawning again. “God, I need coffee,” he mumbled, rubbing his face with his hands in another attempt to get the sleep out of his system. Clearly it didn’t help, as he let out another yawn, hidden by his hand, which Billie noticed was now adorned by a small golden band.

Billie Joe chuckled at the reaction of the young lead singer. As he looked around the hallway for any sign of coffee, or its scent for that matter, Gerard sighed and shook his head.

“Of course there isn't any stupid coffee around,” he grumbled under his breath, barely heard by the punk legend in front of him, who was looking around in the rather plain and boring hallway himself.

“Starbucks?” Billie Joe offered, but it was more of a suggestion than a question. Gerard looked up in Billie's green eyes for a moment before he nodded gratefully in response.

The two men, who were both equally dressed in black, stood out against all others walking in the other direction. They greeted some of their old friends on their way out but didn't hang around for a chat, as their minds were only fixated on the coffee.

Sighing, Gerard looked at the December rain falling down from the skies before he shoved his hands in his pockets and walked outside, knowing that a little rain wouldn't kill him. Anything was better than the bright sunlight. Billie Joe shot him a knowing look as Gerard smirked at him, playfully sticking out his tongue before he was gone; disappearing into the thick crowd of bypassing business men and women. Billie sighed and shook his head, rolling his eyes as he followed Gerard, hoping that he wasn't too far away yet.

Billie couldn’t help but glance around him, at his surroundings, at the people who were ignoring him even though he was, to many people, such famous and well-known face in the world of rock music. Not that he minded; some days, it was a blessing to be able to walk around and not have anyone recognize him or point him out. The rain fell down on him, but he tried not to mind it so much, even when it dampened his hair and caused it to stick to his scalp.

Eventually Billie found Gerard again and the two began to walk-side-by-side through the rain. The conversation between Gerard and himself changed subjects quickly enough, as was usual when they got together; from music, to new bands, genres of music, and in the end, they reached the topic of family as Billie questioned the simple golden band adorning Gerard's hand. A spark seemed to have lit up in Gerard’s eyes when it was even mentioned; he smiled and told him about his new wife and how they met. Soon enough, their eyes landed on the small coffee shop at the end of the street; the green and white sign of Starbucks alerted them of the presence of coffee and at that moment, they knew that was far more important than their current conversation.

Gerard and Billie Joe quickly made their way into the warm shop, welcoming the familiar aroma of different kinds of coffee that hung in the air. Gerard brushed some of his lengthy black hair out of his eyes, placing it behind his ears. Billie Joe had already disappeared from his side and was just sitting down in one of the booths at the back of the little coffee shop, smiling and mentioning Gerard to hurry up and come over. Apparently Gerard had been standing there for longer than he’d intended, just savoring the smells of the various coffees.

“Already ordered the coffee didn't you?” Gerard asked as Billie leaned back, relaxed, against the back of the seat, nodding.

“Orange Mocha Frappuccino!” Billie Joe said excitedly, causing Gerard's eyes to widen slightly.

Billie showed the younger man a big grin before he waved at the girl behind the counter, who was looking around aimlessly when she realized she didn't know who ordered the coffees in her hands. Bringing it over to their booth, she remained rather calm despite the fact that she seemed to recognize both of them Gerard smiled and thanked the girl, who avoided eye contact with both men.

Before Billie Joe could even reach for his wallet, Gerard had already given the girl the right amount, plus a little tip as he seemed fit. Billie Joe glared at him when the girl walked away from their table. Gerard giggled and leaned back in his seat, placing his hands in his neck as he smirked at Billie.

“How did you know?” Gerard asked as he took the first sip from the warm drink. Billie shrugged and took a sip himself, clearly enjoying the drink.

“Eh, I know you well enough to judge your coffee preferences, at least,” he said in a tired voice, which seemed to equal the bags under his light green eyes.

His hair, which was almost shoulder length, was in need of a new dye as it started to show the brown roots slowly. He had changed a little in the last two years, but then again, who didn't change? Green Day had taken a long break after the American Idiot tour, probably for all three members, a rather welcome one that they gladly spent with their families.

“How are the kids?” Gerard asked, curious about Billie's sons, Joey and Jakob, who should be around the age of 12 and 9 right now, Gerard reminded himself.

Billie Joe smiled at the thought of his two sons, who at this moment probably sitting at school, learning to be perfect while it was a lost case in his eyes, even though he wanted them to have a good education; it was something he had failed because of the fact that he wanted to make music, instead. He made eye contact with Gerard who looked back with a small smile playing on his lips.

"They're great," Billie said. "Probably bored out of their skull at school at this moment," he chuckled. Gerard nodded in understanding and took another sip from the coffee in his hand.

Billie Joe yawned a little and closed his eyes, thinking of the home that it seemed like he had to leave so quickly. The record company wanted to talk with the band as soon as possible; apparently it had been almost 4 years since American Idiot and they were starting to get impatient. The fans probably were, too, but Billie knew they were patient enough. American Idiot had been a highly expected album, and he knew that their next album would have to be even better to beat the records their previous records had broken.

"So why were you there?" Gerard asked, noticing the silence coming from Billie Joe. He was tired himself, and still curious as to why he had to come over to Brian's office at the first place, normally Brian always gave them a reason.

"Rob called us, told us we needed to come over as soon as we could, something about starting on a new album..." Billie trailed off.

"Oh right, I remember reading about that. How many songs do you have now? 45?" Gerard chuckled.

"Something around that, we're thinking of starting in January." Billie shrugged. He’d been thinking about the holidays first, instead of starting on a new album.

"What are you going to do?" Billie Joe asked curiously.

"Taking a fucking long break, for starters. We've been touring ever since we started the band, I think its appropriate," Gerard said, smiling tiredly. "The fans will have to wait until 2009 for the new album, but I think they'll be able to handle that."

“Then why were you there? You should be home if you're wanting to take that break,” Billie Joe reasoned calmly. Gerard nodded and muttered a low “I know,” under his breath before he drank from his cup again. His mind wandered, and he found himself wondering why Brian had called them in the first place, without any explanation; normally their manager would actually tell them why they needed to be there.

“Orange Mocha Frappuccino!” Billie Joe suddenly shouted, finding some new energy in the amount of coffee he was drinking. Gerard groaned and looked away as several customers glanced around, some appearing rather annoyed by Billie's loud shouting in the middle of the small coffee shop.

Acting as though he didn't know him, Gerard sipped from his own Starbucks and ignored the various glares directed at Billie Joe. Fiddling with the sleeves of his black leather jacket, that looked a lot like their previous Black Parade jackets without the white straps across the front, Gerard shuddered as some cold air entered the shop, together with a bunch of people who were happily chatting with each other and laughing.

“Hey! Close the damn door!” Billie yelled at them, getting some strange glances from a few girls in the group, though one of the boys quickly closed the door behind him. If it was on Billie's command or not, Gerard might never know, but as long as the cold weather stayed outside, he didn't really care. Gerard let out a small sigh and closed his eyes for a moment as more and more people started to look their way and kept their eyes on Billie, waiting for his next outburst.

“This is even worse than Frank's pink tour bus,” Gerard muttered under his breath, hoping that this was all just a dream and he would wake up soon, next to Lyn-Z. Stopping for a moment with what he was doing, Billie Joe frowned and looked up at Gerard, not knowing what the hell he was talking about.

“Pink tour bus..?” Billie began, clearly confused.

“Frank is always complaining about some dream he constantly has...something about two fan girls painting our bus pink.” Gerard rolled his eyes. Only Frank would dream about something like that...

Billie Joe frowned, wondering what he was saying, before he decided that was a good time to start giggling. Gerard's eyes widened at the reaction and, for the thousand time in that hour, he tried to convince himself it was all just a bad dream.

A very bad dream.

He placed his head in his hands and sighed. “Of all people, I had to run into this guy,” he muttered to himself. Billie Joe managed to regain some of his composure and wiped the tears of hilarity from his eyes as he sometimes let out another small giggle, before he drank the last bits of his coffee and stood up. Gerard looked up and frowned.

“Come on, lets get out of here,” Billie said, and smirked at the glares several people were shooting at him. He winked at Gerard, causing the younger lead singer’s eyes to widen as he grabbed his arm. Gerard quickly pulled Billie Joe out of the coffee shop before he could do whatever he was planning to do, which was usually something stupid. It had stopped raining outside, luckily, but the crowds of people were still as present as they ever were. However, this didn’t stop Billie from recognizing two specific people that were walking towards them.

“It's Mike!” Billie Joe started jump up and down in excitement as Mike Dirnt quickly made his way through the crowd, with Mikey following on his heels.

“See, told you we would find them here,” said Mikey, obviously pleased with himself. Mike looked at Billie Joe and smiled, chuckling a little at the excitement his friend had.

“I should’ve known these two would run into each other,” Mike sighed. Billie Joe giggled loudly and wrapped his arms around Mike's neck, placing his head on his shoulder.

“Sheesh, what happened to you?” Mikey asked Billie, who was looking at the younger Way with wide eyes and a big grin. From the corner of his eye, Mikey saw Gerard shrug, causing him to smile at his older brother.

“Too much Starbucks. Coffee, coffee, coffee,” Billie answered with the big grin still playing on his lips. Mike groaned and sighed, muttering something in the context of “Rob is going to be so pleased, I’m sure,” under his breath, causing Billie to giggle.

“I know what you're going through,” Mikey patted the bassist’s shoulder, as Billie was still clinging on his neck.

“Come on, we better get back,” Gerard decided, pulling Billie away from Mike by his collar so the bassist could breathe again. Walking further, Billie Joe desperately tried to reach Mike who kept his distance from the singer.

“Mike! Come here!” Billie Joe whined, stretching out his arms in front of him to reach Mike, who was exchanging tired glances with Mikey, as though psychically asking him ‘why me?’ over and over again.

“Why won’t you let me near you? Do you hate me? WHY? I LOVE YOU, MIKE!” Billie Joe yelled, his voice wracked with sobs and aimed at the bassist, which was obviously loud enough to receive some strange glances from the people around them. “Please don't leave me!” Billie kept trying to reach out for his friend, but without any luck. Gerard groaned and pulled Billie closer to him.

“You're pulling unneeded attention,” he whispered to Billie who was probably not even listening to what the younger singer was saying, anyway. Walking into the Reprise Records building, Gerard sighed in relief; Rob and Brian were waiting for them in the entry hall, clearly deep in conversation.

Rob sighed and shook his head, smiling a little when he saw Gerard enter the building, pulling Billie with him by his collar. Billie managed to free himself from Gerard's grip on him and ran towards Mike, wrapping his arms around the bassist's waist.

“The wonders of coffee, I’m guessing?” Rob hazarded a guess.

“It can be a pain sometimes,” Brian added. “Trust me on that one.”

* * *

“He ordered the coffee for himself, how could I stop him from drinking it then?” Gerard asked Brian, entering the boring office once again with Brian following him. Brian's eyes widened slightly as he saw the state of his desk and a still hyper Frank sitting in his comfortable chair. Bob and Ray were half-asleep on the couch and probably ignorant to the fact that Mikey and Gerard had left Frank in their care. Brian sighed and shook his head.

“I should’ve known better than to let you guys be in my office alone...”

Gerard laughed a little and patted Brian on the back before the manager pulled Frank out of his chair. Frank complained for a moment before he decided to sit on Gerard's lap, giving him a small kiss on the cheek before he placed his head on Gerard's shoulder.

“And still, he’s surprised when the fans couple us together in their fan fiction,” Gerard thought tiredly, rolling his eyes as Frank listened to his heartbeat with a content smile on his face. Brian collected the several papers on his desk and safely placed them in a drawer, just in case Frank decided to jump up from Gerard's lap and hop on his desk. Not that it ever happened before, but Brian liked to take precautions.

“So…why are you here?” Brian asked, looking at the band members after a thoughtful moment of silence. The effect was instantaneous; suddenly, all five members of the band were sitting upright, their eyes wide in both confusion and horror.

* * *

Two weeks later,
23rd of December:

“Dude. You just freaking suck after what you did, you know that?”

“Come on, you have to admit it was a good joke,” Billie Joe chuckled, sipping from his coffee. Gerard shook his head, apparently not agreeing all that much.

After all was said and done, the band had found out it was all just a prank call from the members of Green Day, who were clearly overjoyed that their plan had worked. Billie looked at Gerard and smirked, wondering what they were going to come up with to pay them back—because everybody knew that they wouldn't let this prank just go and pass by without some sort of prank in return.

“Okay fine, it was.” Gerard rolled his eyes, giving in on Billie Joe before he could start whining about it and rub it in his face even more. Gerard had just taken it as an opportunity and called Lyn-Z to join him in New York City, as some sort of vacation for the both of them. Gerard sipped from his coffee and looked at his cup, now empty with a few coffee stains at the borders. Pouting, Gerard stood up from the table just as Billie Joe did, and smiled tiredly.

“I should be getting home now, or I'm going to get it from my wife,” Gerard chuckled, trying to imagine Lyn-Z angry but failing miserably since she was always late herself. They made quite a pair, in more ways than one. Billie Joe nodded and hugged Gerard briefly before they both walked out of the small coffee shop. Outside, they looked at each other one more time before deciding to go their separate ways. Walking down the street in the winter snow, Gerard stopped and frowned, getting a small bottle out of his back pocket and looked at it, smirking before he turned around and ran after Billie Joe.

“Hey, Billie! Wait up!” Gerard yelled, causing Billie Joe to turn around and look at Gerard running towards him, causing people to glare at him as he pushed them out of the way.

Billie Joe frowned and looked at Gerard, who was trying to regain his breath before he made eye contact with the older lead singer and smirked. Pressing the small bottle in Billie Joe's hand, he shot him a wide grin before turning around and walking away again, shouting “Merry Christmas!” over his shoulder. Billie Joe looked confused at Gerard before he turned his eyes to the bottle in his hand. It was a small dark-brown bottle with the text “Butt-tanning lotion” written on it in orange letters.

Billie Joe's eyes widened and looked back at Gerard, who had already disappeared in the crowd of the New York shoppers. After a few seconds, Billie Joe chuckled and shook his head, pocketing the bottle in his back-pocket before he turned around himself and made his way towards home.

“Merry Christmas Gerard,” he thought, smiling as he looked up at the snow falling from the sky, though he began to wonder why in god’s name Gerard would actually give him something like that. But at that sudden moment he just started to laugh out loud, causing some people to give him a strange glance before continuing with their Christmas shopping. This was indeed, one of the best Christmas gifts he had ever received.

And he had no idea why he got it.

* * *