Sunlight seeped through the thin red curtains, highlighting everything with a magical magenta hue. A blanket was strewn carelessly on the ground, kicked off a sleeping hot body suffering from a horrid dream. Gerard tossed and turned on the low mattress. His neck and forehead were damp with sweat and his shirt stuck to his back, the sweat acting like a glue, and his hair fell onto his closed eyes and tangled in his hand, which rested next to his head. Breathing heavily, he mumbled incoherent words. What exactly he had dreamt of could not be told.

Suddenly, his eyes snapped open. His heart began to slowly return to a normal rhythm as he laid completely still, afraid to move. Almost as if he thought if he shifted even an inch, something terrible would happen.

The bed vibrated. Well, a phone vibrated, shaking the bed and Gerard out of his thoughts. Taking a deep breath, he reached out to his pants, which laid in a messy ball at the end of the small bed, and felt around the fabric for his phone. In his exhaustion last night, he had forgotten to take it out.

Last night. Gerard thought back to the events that occurred the day before. He touched his face, remembering how the cruel boys at the park left the painful marks which covered much of his skin. He remembered crying in the dark alley where he hid, huddled into a ball wishing he could be home with his brother. The knees of his jeans had become wet from bringing them close to his tear-streaked face. He remembered the sun setting and the boys finally giving up and leaving.

He remembered walking in the pouring rain and coming across the small bakery with the kind people and delicious cinnamon roll and coffee. His stomach churned hungrily at the thought of it. It had been the highlight of his week. For some reason, he felt safe and alright in the small shop. He had left around 2am. The younger girl—Lyn—stayed with him, mostly silent, but they chatted a bit.

Gerard smiled at the memory. He rolled off the bed and checked his phone, the bright screen stinging his tired eyes.

"Feeling better?" A text read. He cocked his head, a bit confused, before remembering he had taken a few sick days.

He responded with a simple "meh" and threw his phone on the bed, rubbing his eyes. He shuffled out of his room with half-lidded eyes. He knew the apartment well enough to know where he was going by heart. He walked into the small kitchen and reached for his mug, craving the regenerative taste of coffee he knew so well.

Stifled giggling was heard behind him suddenly and he spun around, prying his tired eyes open, to see a couple girls in lingerie staring at his almost-naked body. He quickly reached for a dish towel and held it over his boxers in an attempt to hide them.

"What the hell, Bob?!" He yelled into the apartment, unsure of where his new roommate was. He heard groaning from the couch and saw blond hair pop up behind it.

"What?" Bob responded crankily and looked over to where Gerard stood awkwardly. He smirked and Gerard finally took a moment to look around the small apartment. There was clothing tossed on the alcohol-stained carpet, a few broken pieces of glass, probably about 20 bottles of beer and wine scattered around, and total strangers sleeping everywhere—on tables, the couch, the floor, wherever. Music was playing quietly.

Gerard's jaw dropped and his face became red. He curled his fingers into a fist and whispered "get out".

"Huh?"

"Get out," he said louder, "you're going to clean this apartment and make it like you were never here and you're going to leave." His teeth grinded and his nails dug into his palms harshly, leaving them slightly wet with red blood. "Now."

With that, he stormed into his room to get dressed quickly—whatever was easy to grab and slip on—and left the now quiet apartment fuming.

~~~

He didn't know where he was going. He just aimlessly walked along empty sidewalks, trying to calm himself. In reality, he didn't know why he was so angry. Upon seeing Bob for the first time, he knew he wouldn't be a perfect roommate; but he needed one, and Bob was there. He was simple and wouldn't bother Gerard. Well, not directly.

The walk turned into a jog, and he soon found himself running through an oddly familiar neighbourhood. He ran past a small, dimly-lit shop and a feeling of warmth and familiarity came over him. He slowed his pace and walked backwards towards the window, looking in. Instantly, the memories flooded back as he stood in front of the window, looking inside and at himself through the reflection. He noticed the mark on his face which had become a dark shade of purple and looked away quickly, as if he was looking at a monster.

He walked into the shop, the smell of freshly baked sweets filling his nose. There were only a few people seated and the same woman from the night before was pouring a drink into a man's mug. His face was buried in a newspaper and he barely stopped reading to thank her.

"Hey," the girl noticed Gerard and greeted sweetly. "I was wondering if you were gonna come in." She giggled and looked at the window where Gerard stood moments ago. He chuckled lightly.

"Couldn't resist," he half-joked, "I just really wanted a cup of that amazing coffee."

The girl smiled. "Coming right up."

Gerard sank into the nearest seat and eyed the man with the newspaper. What could be so interesting that would cause you to be so dismissive to such a kind lady? The man tapped his tattooed fingers together on the edge of the paper and hummed quietly.

"Police reopen five year old case of a boy who died tragically in a car accident. They say new evidence ha—" Gerard stopped reading the headline, upset. He had already seen the paper when he was running, but it still hurt to read. People stood around the paper stand whispering about how terrible it was. Yes, Gerard thought, frowning, truly terrible.

Lyn returned, carrying a steaming mug of coffee. She placed it in front of Gerard with a smile and he noticed a small green corner underneath. He pulled it out, confused.

"What's this?" He asked, holding a ten dollar bill.

"The money you left."

"I left it for a reason. I was paying," he replied, still confused.

"It was on the house. Ma told you."

"I-I can't accept that." He held the money out to her, trying to return it. Lyn just took a step back, pushing his hand away. He sighed, realizing she was stubborn and wouldn't take it. "Fine," he grumbled, defeated.

Lyn walked away and Gerard settled into the table. He started looking at the man with the newspaper. He vaguely heard his foot tapping and humming and wondered what he was listening to. The tattoos and black skinny jeans gave him the impression that it was rock, but he wasn't sure. The man sighed and flipped the page, giving Gerard a quick view of his face. He had a tattoo on his neck and a piercing on his lip, but his face was actually quite sweet and soft looking. He seemed kind.

Suddenly, he slammed the paper down onto the table and huffed. Gerard tried to quickly look away so he wouldn't know he was looking at him. The fast motion actually caught his attention and he examined the boy in front of him who was looking anywhere else. He couldn't help but smile as he sipped his coffee. The mystery man stared at Gerard's obnoxiously coloured hair and smiled. In short, he was intrigued.

"Look who came back," Ma marvelled, approaching Gerard. The man went back to his paper.

"Hey," Gerard greeted happily, feeling oddly comfortable.

He couldn't remember the last time he felt like that.

September 6, 2019
1348 words

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Lol sorry this took a hot second, I was mourning Oreos. If you haven't read that, you should lol. Also I lowkey forgot I had a chapter ready. Oops.