Stand Up

Lizzie's PoV

I hopped out of the shower and shook out my freshly dyed hair. I was always dying my hair, if I didn't have it dyed I felt exposed and out in the open. I smiled at my hair in the mirror. It used to be a medium(ish) brown, my natural color, but was now black. I sighed and got dressed, then blow dried my hair. After applying some eyeliner and mascara I left the bathroom and went into the living room of my mom and I's small apartment. I groaned when I heard her enter, she had another 'friend' with her.

"Elizabeth," She said, using my full name, she is the only one to still do that, "This is Bruce." The man next to her was probably in his 50's or 60's. My mother was only 41, but she had been going out with old men since she was in her 30's. I smiled at Bruce and then grabbed my bag and keys off of the ratty coffee table.

"I'm going out tonight, probably staying at Leah's." I told them. I wasn't planning on going out tonight, but I definitely wasn't going to stay. I made that mistake when I was 15. Let's just say it was one of the most horrible experiences of my life, and I have had many.

"Have fun." My mom said as I walked out the door. I rolled my eyes as soon as the door shut behind me. I unlocked my phone and called Leah. She answered on the second ring.

"Hey, can I stay at your place tonight? My mom’s having a friend over." I told her. She laughed.

"Of course this place is yours too. Even if your name isn't on the lease, you stay here all the time."

"I know. See you in a few." I said and hung up. I drove to Leah's blasting 'I Am Bulletproof' by Black Veil Brides. I would always play that song when I felt like my mom was getting into my head. I'd dealt with her mental abuse for years, but never knew how to handle it. I finally realized music was the only way to do it. Since the song came out, it'd been my getaway song.

I finally got to Leah's. Letting myself in with the key in the fake rock I had gotten her at the Spy Museum in Washington DC when I vacationed with my aunt in 2010.

"Hey where are you?" I yelled.

"Be right there." She said, there was a pause then she came up the hallway. "Hey what’s- oh my god your hair!" I laugh at her reaction.

"You would think that you wouldn't be so shocked every time I dyed my hair since it happens so much." I joked.

"What can I say? Nothing will top that time you dyed it that bright orange-red, I loved it, but it was crazy."

"So what do you think?" I asked, flipping my hair to one side.

"Black is radical, but dark hair has always looked good on you. I don't hate it." She told me. I laugh.

"Whatever." I said, acting as if I was mad at her.

"I can tell when you're acting you know. We've been friends long enough that you can't fool me anymore. How about we go get pizza? I haven't eaten since lunch at work." She told me. I shook my head. "You can just eat something here, I'm not hungry." "Lizzie, when was the last time you ate something?" She asked skeptically.

"Before I dyed my hair." I said. Not meeting her eyes.

"And what did you eat?"

"Crackers." I admitted and she groaned.

"We are going to get pizza. And I advise you to eat it or I will personally shove it down your throat." She said. Her tone was threatening. She was the only one who knew about my eating disorders. I didn't tell her myself though; she figured it out when we were in 10th grade. Little did she know how long I'd been suffering with it and all the other things I was doing at that time. I almost felt bad for not telling her, but I didn't want to bother her with my issues.

"Fine. Let’s go." I say grabbing my wallet and phone out of my bag. "I'll drive, because we all know how bad you are at it." She pouted. “We both know it's true." I told her as we left her apartment.

We drove to the pizza place in silence, except for our singing and screaming along to Pierce The Veil. I laughed every time she couldn't scream. I had tried teaching her in the past, but she kept using her chest, not her diaphragm.

We finally got to the pizza place and I saw a familiar car in the parking lot. I groaned.

"Do I have to go in?" I asked. Leah rolled her eyes, and dragged me out of the car. As soon as we enter my older sister yelled to me.

"C'mere! I have something for you!" She was rather loud. I walked over to her.

"Hey Alexis." I said in a bored tone. In a way Lexi wasn't any better than my mom. This was disappointing, because I always looked up to her when we were kids.

"Guess what I got you and Leah?" She asked me excitingly.

"Um, I don't know a hamster?"

"Nope something better."

"Well what is it!?" I asked. And she held up two tickets to Warped Tour 2013. I screamed loudly, attracting attention from everyone. "NO FUCKING WAY!" I exclaimed.

"Yep, because you have the best sister on this planet."

"Keep telling yourself that." I say as I snatch the tickets from her hand and hug her. "Thanks Alexis."

"No prob. See you later and have fun." She said and we said our goodbyes. Leah was already sitting at a table with a cheese pizza.

"So why'd you scream?" She asked curious. I held up the two tickets. She had a similar reaction to mine. I laughed and took a small bite of the pizza.

"We are going to Warped fucking Tour, 2013!" I said and she glared at me for my language. I usually made a comment about how I swore, and that there was nothing she could do about it, but I was too excited to right now.

"You're going to meet Black Veil Brides!" She exclaimed to me.

"And I am going to make sure that you meet Kellin Quinn! No matter what, this is going to be our day." I said.

We finished the pizza and headed home. We didn't get much sleep that night, both of us were too excited to sleep, but we did get a few hours in. It'd been a great night, and right then, I was probably the happiest I had been in a while.