Too Good to Be True

Staring at the window, I sighed. Another two weeks had passed, and I was not dealing with this greatly. Knowing Frank and the boys still had another month to go made things even worse. I hated isolating myself from my friends, but I had no other choice. I was depressed, and I knew it.

"God Hailey! Look at you! You're just a stupid girl! You're worth nothing!"

"You little slut!"

"Get out of my fucking sight,"

"All you are is an accident."

"You're making a mess of yourself!"

"Hailey! Stop crying!"

"God, you can't even control yourself."

I shook my head, but the voices would never disappear. I guessed they were just a mixture of memories and my conscience. I didn't really care though, I didn't care about anything anymore. The sound of the door opening made me swing my head round, wanting to see Frank or Tommy, but instead seeing Iona.

"Hey,"

"Hey," I said quietly, and turned around to face her.

"What have you been doing?" I looked her straight in the eye.

"Nothing."

"Hailey-"

"No, I mean literally nothing."

"So you've not like, cu-"

"No, i've not cut," I stated simply. Half of me wanted to slap myself and wake up, while the other half just wanted to give up.

"Ok...just making sure. Are you sure you don't want to get like, anti-depressants or anything?"

"Iona, i'm fine," I stated, and sighed. "I just can't deal with it all at once I guess. I feel like i'm living two lives right now." Iona frowned at me, before leaving over and hugging me.

"I just hope you come around soon."

"Yeah, me too..." I watched as she got up, and went to leave the room.

"If you want anything, just give us a shout, 'kay?" I nodded, and she left. I faintly heard Lozza ask if I was ok outside the door, and I sighed. I hated making my friends upset, especially over me. Looking back out the window, I decided to actually do something. For the past two weeks, i'd sat in my bedroom, thinking, or crying, or sleeping, or just daydreaming. Maybe if I had something to occupy my mind, it would cheer me up a little. I went on a hunt around the room, looking for things to catch my interest. I noticed a small bookshelf, but it contained only random story titles and a bible, which I wasn't too fussed about. Groaning quietly, I walked all the way around, but my hand stopped when it met a familiar piece of fabric. Having not touched my suitcase since we'd came here, I began to investigate it.

I held my breath as I zipped open the main area. I smiled seeing a few albums. I grinned especially seeing all four MCR albums. I looked around to find somewhere to play the albums, but there was no sign of any CD-playing piece of technology. I groaned again, and put my head in the suitcase. Getting agitated, I picked up the whole thing, and tipped it upside down, letting all the contents fall out and rattle against the floor. It just looked like a bunch of rubble, but one item stood out to me.

"What...?" I whispered to myself, holding up a red and black zippo lighter. As though a switch went on in my head, everything came flooding back in the form of flashbacks...

"Thanks, for your number. I'll be seeing you again soon right?" Frank said, looking up at me with a sparkle in his eye. I couldn't help but quiver as I held back a squeal.

"Sure. I mean, if you want," He grinned at me, putting his phone back in his pocket.

"I had a great night tonight," My heart rate increased, but I tried not to let it show.

"Unforgettable, for sure." He chuckled, but reached into his pocket again.

"In case you do forget..." He pulled out his zippo lighter. It was red and black, and I gotta admit, it was cool. "Here."

"Really?"

"Yeah, I mean, it's just a lighter," We both chuckled to each other. I ran my thumb over the lighter, before shoving it into my pocket.

~*~

I got the fright of my fuckin life when a lighter fell out of one of the pockets. "What the fuck!?" I cursed. I reluctantly went over to pick it up. I stared at it for a moment. This wasn't like a lighter we'd use...it looked american, what was it, Zippo or something?

And then it hit me. The lighter was the exact same as the one in my dream. It was the one that Frank gave me.

I stared at it in shock, disbelieving that such a simple object could bring back such meaningful memories. But one part stuck out to me.

And then it hit me. The lighter was the exact same as the one in my dream. It was the one that Frank gave me.

The lighter was the exact same as the one in my dream.

Dream.

I gasped, dropping the lighter. I looked around, and everything felt different. Definitely felt different. It didn't feel...real..

And that was it. It was all a dream. None of it was real. I was still just a hopeless little teenager stuck in a household with abusive parents and a sad life. I'd never met the boys of MCR. I'd never had 7 minutes in heaven with Frank Iero. I never met Lozza, Elena and Lena. I wasn't even in New Jersey right now.

I was in a dream. And I had to wake up.

~*~

After memorising what I needed to memorise, I walked through the lounge and straight to the door, not noticing that all of the girls were sitting there.

"Hey Hailey! Where are you going?" Elena asked.

"Out." I noticed the girls looking at me funny.

"To do what exactly?" Iona asked, raising an eyebrow at me. I licked my lips, preparing for what I was going to say next. I knew saying it out loud would make it even more real. But I knew one thing, i'd have to act fast.

"To take the brooklyn shortcut."