So...Who Are You Again? My Chemical Romance? Never Heard of You.

As we neared the exit the hotel, I squinted as the morning sun made itself apparent through the double glass doors. I grumbled to myself, still used to the artificial inside glow of the breakfast area. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Frank pick up one of the complimentary newspapers sitting neatly inside a blue wire bin. He spread the paper apart, completely overlooking the main headline, which I found odd because I thought the whole idea of a headline was to catch your eye.

"Hold on," Frank requested, stopping when we got outside, right past the automatic doors. He took a seat cross-legged on the pavement then spread out the paper along the ground, smoothing it repeatedly. He hunched over the newspaper, scanning through the articles. I watched him intently as he searched through the tiny, insignificant print rather than the enlarged ones continued from previous pages. I finally took a seat down on the ground across from Frank after growing tired of waiting, but as soon as I crossed my legs, he stood up holding out the paper away from him.

"Hey, Julie I-" he stopped, when he realized I wasn't standing there anymore. I widened my eyes in annoyance as he turned around and lowered his head when he spotted me on the ground. "What are you doing down there?”

"Just watching the grass grow," I replied with a dour smile, getting back up on my feet.

"Oh, well check this out." Frank beckoned me to come closer. When I did, I looked over his shoulder to find pretty much nothing but small print. My eyes trailed to where his thumb pointed to on the bottom right:

Eleven Year Old Boy Sets Record for Fastest Soapbox Car

"Isn't that neat?" Frank asked with a crooked, enthusiastic smile placed upon his lips. I read the four short paragraphs under the headline that were just long enough to cover the basic facts.

"Uh-" I stated, not understanding what the big deal was. I furrowed my eyebrows and stared at the headline again as if something awesome would make itself apparent if I looked at it long enough.

"You're kidding," Frank said, turning his head to look at me with the same impressed smile. I could visibly see the excitement dancing in his lovely eyes, I was so close. I shrugged, starting to feel slightly embarrassed that I couldn't see the amazement in the simple article.

"When I was little, I always wanted to make a super fast soapbox car, but I never had the chance," Frank explained, folding up the paper. "I just think its cool this kid got to."

“I’m sorry to say that we didn’t share the same dream,” I said after a couple seconds, stifling a laugh. He huffed indifferently then folded his arms, the newspaper wrinkling against his side.

“What’d you want to do then?” he asked, nodding his head to me. I looked up at the awning in deep thought, trying to pry up memories I hadn’t acknowledged probably since they happened.

“I remember,” I said, “I wanted to have my own cooking show.”

“A cooking show?” Frank repeated, laughing. I frowned, discouraged at his reaction. I had always loved cooking ever since I was little, aiding my stay-at-home mother in the kitchen with simple tasks like breaking the eggs or stirring ingredients together.

“Well, what kind of a dream is making a dumb box car?” I retaliated bitterly.

“Sorry,” Frank apologized, shaking off his fit of laughter. “I just pictured you in one of those cutesy aprons on the Cheese-It boxes.”

“Oh.” I wrinkled my nose, trying to picture it too. He was right- That’s usually where famous cooks ended up. I wound up giggling as the mental picture formed in my mind.

“Are you good at cooking?”

“I like think I am,” I answered reasonably, nodding.

“I’m sure not.” He laughed at himself. “I burn everything.”

“Well at least you’re good at the guitar, you got that on me,” I replied. I tried to play guitar once in high school and I made an utter fool of myself because I could barely press my fingers down hard enough on the acoustic strings. Based on that, I decided the guitar wasn’t for me.

“Well, yeah,” he gloated shamelessly. He began walking again and I soon followed. He casually slipped the newspaper into his back pocket then pulled out a white box.

“Are you serious?” I scowled as I watched him remove a cigarette from the box. He looked at me innocently, the cigarette loosely hanging on his lips. “It’s only six am.”

“Smokes a smoke whatever the time,” he reasoned, getting out his dark purple lighter. He crumpled the box with his other hand and dunked it in the trashcan we passed by. I had a serious problem with smoking- It absolutely sickened me, especially when the fumes were forced upon me while hanging out with Shelly for the time she used to. I had seen Frank smoking before, but I paid no mind since he hadn’t been near me.

As soon as the flame lit the end of the cigarette and he reached to take a drag, I slapped it out of his mouth to the ground. He stood there dumbfounded, frozen where he was as his eyes averted toward me. Without a word, he bent down to pick up the cigarette but I stepped on it before he could reach.

“What the hell?” he complained, looking at me through a face that seemed like he was about to cry.

“You’re not smoking around me,” I said sternly, my eyes locked with his to show how serious I was.

“That was my last one,” he pouted. “I was looking forward to that.”

“You shouldn’t look forward to what will ultimately kill you,” I advised as we began walking along the hotel again.

“You owe me money,” Frank insisted, poking my shoulder. I could tell he wasn’t too torn up about it, more over winning the fight.

“I’m poor.” I shrugged.

“Well you owe me something since you just pulverized my last cigarette,” he argued, pointing back to the ground.

“I did you a favor,” I told him. “Now you’ll live a few minutes longer if you die by natural causes.”

“I could smoke twice as much tomorrow then all your work and more would be undone,” he said sullenly, defying logic making me smile.

“I would very much like you to add to your death, just don’t do it around me,” I compromised.

“Okay, okay,” he agreed, raising his hands in agreement. “But I’d say you owe me an apology meal with your mad cooking skills.”

“Sure,” I concurred with a chuckle.

We exited the parking lot in silence, both of us staring down at our own feet. I began humming to myself absentmindedly as I took a left. My ears pricked up when I heard a distant voice talking and I turned around to see Frank walking the other direction- He had gone right at the exit.

“Frank!” I called and he abruptly stopped. His head looked left to right before he turned around and saw me.

“It’s this way!” Frank yelled back, holding both arms up and pointing behind him.

“How do you know?”

“Because I said so!” he persisted. “That automatically makes me right!”

I clicked my tongue then walked toward him, tired of yelling. He took a few steps toward my approaching figure then stopped once we met.

“Which way?” I questioned, looking around us. There wasn’t much around the hotel except a few restaurants, a gas station, and a handful of stores. I really had no idea what way to pick to find a pet shop, if there was even one around.

“I already told you the right way.”

“We should go in and ask someone,” I recommended, glancing to the entrance of the hotel. It seemed that the sensible side of me took leave when it came to Frank because I temporarily believed him, and I’m usually not a very impulsive person.

"Okay, I know how to settle this.” He held his palms forward, trying to settle the dispute. I watched him expectantly for a couple seconds before he continued slowly, “If your name is Frank, you get to choose which way to go."

"And if your name is Julie, you have the authority to overrule Frank's decision.” I placed my hands on my hips, frowning.

"Y-You can't do that,” Frank sputtered. “I object."

"Denied," I replied then faced the hotel, ready to head back to the lobby.

"I don't care, I'm still objecting."

"You're not allowed."

"I object to the too!" he declared, crossing his arms.

"I'm getting directions," I said, already taking a few steps toward the gate.

"Take my hand," Frank requested suddenly, sticking out his hand as if he were introducing himself. I was taken aback by the strange manner and chose to stop.

"What?" I asked, wheeling around so I faced him head on.

"Do it," he insisted, waving his hand slightly in mid air. The scene from Aladdin suddenly popped into my head, right before the princess and "Prince Ali" sang their perfectly harmonized, heartwarming song full of love and cheer. I knew Frank and I weren't going to break into song and ride around the Middle East on a magic carpet, but this reminded me of the principle of it. How the princess lived a sheltered life and wanted adventure, and Aladdin was able to show her a whole new world. Frank defied my usual logic- That's why I enjoyed being around him, I figured out.

With that in mind, I hesitantly obeyed and gripped his hand, unsure of his motives but willing to go along with it.

"Alright." Frank readjusted his grip. "Whoever pulls the other five steps in the direction they want wins. Ready, set, go."

Before I knew it, Frank jerked my arm and was dragging me behind him, catching me off guard like the thumb war. I quickly came to my senses and I yanked back, surprising him. We stood at a stalemate for a couple seconds, but I soon began losing when Frank’s pull became stronger.

All of the sudden, he tugged my arm with great force, causing me to fall against him with a tiny shriek of surprise. He hugged his arms around my torso and lifted me off the ground a few inches, then headed in his desired direction.

"I win." He smirked triumphantly. I narrowed my eyes and stuck my tongue out at him childishly, unable to do anything else since my arms were squeezed against me under Frank's strong grip. So, it wasn't as romantic and planned out as Aladdin; there weren’t perfectly planned fireworks and there was probably a better way to get me to go with him, but it fell under my standards.

“You can set me down,” I told Frank after a couple seconds of pouting.

“Nah,” he declined simply, making his grip a little tighter as he paraded down the sidewalk.

“Why do I keep getting picked up?” I asked, finally remembering.

“You’re pick-up-able," he said slyly, nodding his head with a devious look. I rolled my eyes, figuring it would be easier just to accept the answer. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a blob of purple. Curiously I turned my head to find an early morning jogger in the said purple sweat suit watching us strangely as she passed, her pace slowing down due to the sight. I couldn't imagine how strange we looked.

"Morning!" I called with a grin, causing Frank, who now spotted the woman, to giggle as he smiled broadly to her. She flashed a sad excuse for a fake smile then continued at her former pace, averting her attention away, making us laugh.

"That was so perfect," Frank complimented, both of us still unable to shake the smiles from our faces. But as he looked at me a couple seconds, his smile slowly disappeared, making mine to do the same.

“Hey, while you’re there I want to ask you something,” he said softly, looking away from me now.

“Yeah?” I asked, wanting to know why he suddenly grew grim.

“You do know I’m really sorry about being a jerk to you, right?” Frank's eyes met mine again and his eyebrows drew together apologetically.

“Of course,” I said truthfully. "I already told you we can just forget it."

“Shelly told me it made you really upset,” Frank continued guiltily, referring to the conversation they had that I wasn’t supposed to hear.

“It made me cry.”

“Oh my God,” he freaked out, widening his eyes in shock. He stopped immediately then quickly set me down, though I still stood close to him. His hands gripped the sides of my shoulders as he looked at me terrified. “Are you serious? I'm sorry- I’m so fucking-”

He stopped short when he noticed the smirk on my face, telling him I was kidding. His muscles visibly relaxed and a smile formed as he sighed a breath of relief. His hands on my shoulders slid down and stopped at my forearms as he leaned forward, touching his forehead to mine.

"Good," he whispered, closing his eyes in contentment. I was surprised by his reaction, but didn't show it. Neither of us moved, seemingly frozen in relative time. For a second, I felt different, similar to when I held Frank's hand earlier. It was a strange feeling. But before I knew it, Frank pulled away then looked down the two inches taller he was than me with a little smile, letting his hands fall to his side.

"I really shouldn't have taken it out on you, though," Frank persisted with his apology. I looked at him, really not wanting to talk about our first impressions of each other.

"Hey, try not to think about it," I said as I tapped his shoulder once. He nodded reluctantly, biting his lip and still probably feeling regretful. I didn't want him to feel bad about it on top of still recovering from Lauren, which I still knew he was. I figured he was just putting on a happy face for everyone to compensate for his previous attitude. "Let's just keep going."

"Yeah," Frank agreed, putting his hands in his pockets. We walked in a comfortable silence for a few minutes, just treading down the sidewalk, the hotel far from view now.

"Woah," I heard Frank whisper. I glanced up to him from the ground and noticed he slowed down as he stared across the street in amazement. I followed his gaze and found myself gaping as well. Soon, we were completely stopped, staring at an old, abandoned building- It was positively gigantic and stretched on and on both vertically and horizontally. The detail put into the outside was remarkable, and was especially accented with the ivy engulfing the majority of the lower portion. There was a short, plastic orange construction fence lining the outside, showing that it would soon be torn down and replaced.

"We're so going to the top," Frank declared, already heading across the street. I continued staring at the building, speculating what it was used for.

"Wait, what?" I blinked, just processing what Frank said. I quickly jogged to catch up to him, pointing to the bright fence. "Do you see that? It was put up to keep people out."

"It's not like I'll be in anyone's way," Frank replied stubbornly as he stepped carefully over the fence. I stood in front of it, watching him stride through the slightly overgrown grass.

"Frank, come on," I pleaded, softly stomping my foot.

"I just want to see the top," he called back, continuing through the grass. I stood rooted to where I was with a frown and crossed arms as I watched him. I shifted my weight to one leg, already growing impatient. I grumbled to myself when a little voice kept willing me to follow him, to have fun.

"Fine," I irritably agreed with myself, raising my arms as I took a step over the fence. "Fine."

I followed Frank's footsteps and reached the concrete as he stood in front of the giant doors, looking up at them.

"Neat, huh?" I asked from behind him after a couple seconds of taking in the craftsmanship myself. He jumped, not expecting me to have followed him then agreed when he spotted me with a smile. He turned his attention back to the doors and pushed them open, pleasantly surprised they weren't locked.

The building was large on the inside, too. The main entrance led to a giant room which had several doors lining it. There was no furniture and the walls looked pretty run down.

"Woah," Frank repeated, a small sound reverberating back to us. An echo room- Most excellent. He smirked at this then glimpsed in my direction before yelling, "Fuck!"

I smiled and nudged him in the shoulder as I passed by to explore the room, the obstinacy bouncing along the walls. He yelled a whole strew of curse words with an amused look before muttering to himself, “This is the greatest thing ever.”

“Hey, here’s the stairs,” I said from the side, pointing to a door.

“I thought you were against this,” Frank said skeptically as he sauntered toward me. I shrugged with a little hum.

“I’m interested now,” I admitted.

“Cool,” he approved then opened his arms to the room. “But first, you have to try this.”

“Later,” I replied, already heading up the stairwell. I heard Frank’s footsteps follow and we began the winding road to the top. After we stopped two or three times to rest, we finally got to the top, panting heavily.

“Shit, I’m outta shape,” I breathed, placing my hands on my knees.

“Damn smoking,” Frank cursed, leaning against the wall. I stood up again, grabbing onto the ledge, and stared out into the small city our hotel was at, amazed by the outstanding view. I was grateful Frank broke the law and got me to come up here.

“Hey, I want to try something,” I said suddenly, facing Frank who stared at the incredible view.

“You’re not going to jump off are you?” he questioned, eying me. “I hate to doubt your abilities, but you are not a trained professional no matter what you might think.”

“No, I saw it on a movie,” I answered, backing up. I looked at Frank’s pockets, spotting the newspaper he still had with him in the back one.

“What the hell do you watch?” Frank asked to which I rolled my eyes. I snatched the paper that was sticking out then unfolded it along the stone railing. I took a loose paper from the middle, folded it in half, and then ran my hand along it. Frank watched attentively, trying to figure out what I was doing. After folding the paper certain ways a few more times, he let out a short laugh when he realized I had made a paper airplane. I let the tip of my tongue stick out as I lined it up, facing the open air. I launched it and we watched it soar over the buildings below and into the distance where it landed neatly in the street.

“You’re a genius,” Frank declared with a grin, grabbing a piece for himself to morph.

We continued making several airplanes and sending them off, simply watching the wind catch and float them along. After a couple basic, but effective ones, we tried to make them more elaborate, and would laugh whenever an idea completely failed and dive-bombed ungracefully to the ground. You could call it littering I guess, but it was fun and I didn’t care.

Soon, we ran out of paper much to our dismay and decided to head back down to the first floor. I never thought an activity so simple could offer me the blissful mood I was in. And thankfully there were stair rails to slide down so I my attitude didn’t get dampened with exhaustion.

Once in the echo room again, Frank beckoned me again to yell something. My spirits felt lighter than before for some reason, so without hesitation I raised my arms and announced, “I am a golden god!”

“Hell yeah, Almost Famous.” Frank laughed as my voice echoed back, catching my reference to the movie I especially liked. I couldn’t help but keep smiling, as if something inside wouldn’t let me have it any other way. I couldn’t remember feeling this way to this extent before. Then I realized it-

I was truly happy.