The automatic doors of the beauty supply store opened with a whoosh, allowing Gerard to step inside. The cashier extended a cheery greeting and a smile and he responded with a polite hello before walking off to browse through the products.

He wandered up and down the length of each of the aisles, brushing the stray strands of pale blonde hair that had fallen out from his beanie out of his face as his eyes scanned the rows upon rows of make-up and nail polish, searching for the one item he had come here for.

He caught sight of one of the store employee's in his peripheral vision and turned to call out to them. "Excuse me?"

You set down the box of eyeliner you were unpacking and made your way over to Gerard. "How may I help?" you smiled.

Seeing you up close, the singer was caught-off guard by the radiance of your beauty, and his words caught in his mouth.

"Ng."

You let out a short giggle. "I'm sorry, sir, but you're gonna have to speak up a bit."

Mentally facepalming himself, Gerard shifted his weight from one foot to the other and drew in a shaky breath.

"Do you guys have any hair-dye?" he spoke softly.

Nodding in response to his question, you started walking away, gesturing for Gerard to follow you. "Yeah, they're in the hair care aisle. You looking for anything specific? A colour or brand or something?"

"Not a specific brand, no," he shook his head and stuffed his hands in his jacket pockets as he followed you, "But I was thinking of going blue?"

You turned to look at him with a slight tilt of your head before nodding in approval. "Yeah, I could see that. It'd suit you."

"Thanks," he blushed, averting his gaze and scratching the back of his neck.

Tossing him another smile, you turned into the hair care aisle and walked him toward the dyes, extending a hand in showcase of the shelf adorned with colourful boxes.

"Here ya go, take your pick."

"Thank you," he breathed, eyes lighting up and he took a step forward to examine the variety; there were easily over twenty different brands, and he bit his lip as he tried to settle on one, "Do you have any recommendations?"

You arched your brows and cocked your head, placing your hands on your hips as you stepped forward to join him.

"Well, this one's our most popular," you reached out to grab a box of blue L'Oreal dye, "Although I'm not a big fan; I think it dries out your hair."

Gerard watched you intently as you returned the product to its place on the shelf before picking up a different one labelled 'Curl Up and Dye'; his lips parted in surprise.

Noticing his reaction, you laughed. "Don't let the name put you off – I promise it's a really good brand. Not very well known but it works incredibly. It's made with less-harmful chemicals and whatnot; I swear by it," you gushed; it was only then that Gerard caught side of the vibrant streak weaving through your hair.

You offered it for him to take and he accepted, taking it into his hands. He read the inscriptions on the box, pretending to contemplate over whether or not to take it when in reality, he had decided he would be taking it the moment you said that you use it.

After a moment, he looked up at you with a small smile. "I'll take your word for it."

"Good choice," you whispered with a smirk, patting him on the shoulder and walking off before he had the chance to ask for your name.

~

Gerard entered the store again, this time with hair that was a fading blue. A couple months had passed since he'd coloured his hair, so he was back to get another box of dye and touch it up. Maybe even switch up the colour.

What he hadn't expected upon his return to the shop was the hoard of excited chattering that greeted him as soon as he stepped foot inside. The store was packed almost to capacity with customers, most of which were hovering around the make-up section, where a temporary makeover station complete with chairs, lights, mirrors – everything – was set up.

The singer stood still for a moment, trying to gather his bearings amidst the chaos. He hadn't noticed your presence until you spoke.

"Psst, hey," you called out to him from an aisle away, where you were standing with a tray of sweet treats; he startled out of his trance and turned to you with wide eyes, making you chuckle at his adorableness, "Dye is 50% off. I'd move quickly, if I were you."

He gave a small smile. "Thank you," he breathed.

You scrunched your face up at him as if to say 'no problem' and started to move away, but he called out to stop you.

"Wait!" he took a step forward and extended his hand as if to stop you; you turned to him with an expectant look and he felt his nerves kick in. "I, uh, I'm Gerard."

You beamed at him. "Hi, Gerard. I'm (Y/N)."

"(Y/N)," he repeated, mentally paying close attention to each and every letter as it spilled from his lips. He smiled at you again, before leaning to look at the commotion behind you with a slight frown. "What's going on?"

"Oh," you glanced over your shoulders at the customers before refocusing on Gerard and jutting a thumb over at them, "We're having a special event for women's month. We brought in professional glam teams to host lessons and do makeovers. And I was tasked with the wonderful job of playing waitress," you held up the tray of fairy cakes in your hand.

You caught sight of your boss watching you, and you apologised to Gerard.

"I've gotta go. My boss is giving me side eye. But here," you picked up a cupcake and held it out to him; he gratefully accepted.

"It's cool. But before you go, do you have any colour suggestions?" he asked with a hopeful tone.

Walking backwards, you narrowed your eyes as you thought. "Neon green," you joked, shooting him a cheeky grin.

"Funny," he scoffed as he rolled his eyes at you. You laughed, giving a short wave before turning to offer treats to the customers.

Gerard waved back, before walking over to the hair care aisle, stopping in front of the dyes, and picking up one the colour of neon green.

~

"Dude, just ask her out already," Mikey groaned, lifting up his bass from his lap and setting it on its stand. "It's been months since you first met."

"Yeah but-"

"No buts," Ray interjected as he settled down next to Gerard, "just do it. Invite her to the release party."

"Isn't it a bit too soon for that, though?" the singer questioned warily, absentmindedly picking at the cuticles on his fingers.

"You dyed your hair green for her. You're clearly in love with the girl. The sooner you ask her out, the better," Frank chimed, lighting a cigarette and taking a drag.

"I'm not in love with her," Gerard defended before slumping down in his seat, "I think."

"Yeah," Frank laughed.

"Sure," Mikey scoffed.

"Okay," Ray patted his friend on the shoulder.

"Alright, alright, fine. I'll do it. I'll ask her out."

~

The sound of the door opening caught your attention and you looked up to acknowledge the customer. You nearly choked on your water when you caught sight of Gerard.

"Oh, my god," you spluttered, pressing a hand to your chest as you tried to focus on breathing properly through the laughter, "You actually did it!"

Gerard raised his brows and held out his arms while walking forward. "I take your recommendations very seriously."

"I see that," you nodded, biting on your lower lip before setting your water down on the counter and walking out from behind the register. "Well, as much as you're totally rocking this look," you gestured at his bright hair and his contrastingly dark clothing with an amused chuckle as you started over for the hair care aisle, "Might I recommend a, uh, less eccentric colour?"

"That sounds like wonderful idea."

"How aboutttt..." you pursed you lips and danced your fingers along the boxes as you tried to pick out a colour, "this one."

You grabbed a platinum-grey box and turned to look at Gerard.

"I like it," he approved, "I like it a lot."

"Looks like I got my mojo back," you boasted, cocking your head up proudly.

"And just in time, too," he remarked, following you back to the register, "I'm going to an album release party in New York tomorrow night, and I doubt that this," he pointed up at his green hair, "would've received much love."

"Album release? That's sick. Which artist?"

"Fall Out Boy."

"No way," you beamed widely, "How did you manage to get an invite?"

Gerard sniggered softly. "We're friends."

"Seriously?" you scoffed disbelievingly, making an impressed face when he nodded. "That's really cool."

"You a fan?"

"I listen to them quite a bit, yeah," you nodded, ringing up the dye and depositing it into a bag.

"Ever seen them live?" Gerard questioned, fishing for his wallet. His nerves were kicking in now and he was beginning to think that this whole thing was a terrible idea.

"No. I've never been to any concert, actually."

"Aw, that sucks," he pouted slightly.

"Tell me about it," you agreed, handing over the bag with a sad smile.

"Hey, if you want," he started, taking the bag from you, "I can..."

Your eyes lit up, and you stood up straighter as you waited for him to finish his sentence. But he chickened out, and didn't say what he originally intended to.

"I can get you front row seats to their concert. Ya know, if they, uh, ever... come... here," he faltered towards the end of his sentence, looking down and frowning as he realised that the guys probably wouldn't be having a concert there anytime in the near future. Damn it, Gerard. "Well," he chuckled nervously, not even giving you a chance to respond to his earlier statement as he shoved his wallet back into his pocket and rushed for the door, "See ya!"

"Uh," you gingerly raised a hand to wave at him but he was already out of the store, "bye?"

~

Frank, Mikey and Ray stood inside the venue, a few feet away from the front entrance, as they waited for Gerard to arrive.

All three of them were expecting him to walk in with you on his arm, so one can imagine their reactions when Gerard strolled into the party alone.

The singer was greeted by the upset faces of his band mates, who were shaking their heads in disappointment.

"What?" Gerard shifted uncomfortably under their gazes. "I said I'd ask her out. I didn't say when."

~

Usually, Gerard's visits to the store you worked at would happen once every couple of months, when the dye eventually started fading from his hair. But lately, his visits were becoming more and more frequent, due to the fact that he was beginning to buy semi-permanent dye instead of the permanent ones, like he used to.

You had noticed the sudden change in his product preferences, but said nothing for the sake of preserving his – now monthly – visits. The two of you had gotten closer over the months since he first walked in, and his visits seemed to be lasting longer and longer each time he came around.

You'd have conversations about anything and everything and over time, you sensed yourself falling for him. There was only one problem: by now, Gerard had dyed his hair almost every colour the store had to offer, but the dork still hadn't asked you out.

Unfortunately for you, the day Gerard finally worked up the guts to ask you out without wussing out was the day you had decided to take an off day.

Gerard entered the store with pep in his step, smile already on his face at the prospect of seeing you. That smile, however, was quickly replaced with a frown when you weren't anywhere to be seen.

He spotted someone in the hair care aisle and he rushed over in hopes that it was you.

"(Y/N)?"

"No, sorry," your co-worker turned to smile at him apologetically, "(Y/N)'s off today. Flew down to see her family for a couple days, since it's a holiday tomorrow."

"Oh," his shoulders slumped in disappointment.

"But, hey, I know that you usually come in for dye... so can I help you choose one?"

"No," he barked almost immediately, startling the employee. He didn't mean to snap at them, but choosing colours for him was your thing. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to yell. I, uh, it's fine. I'll just take..."

He looked at the selection in front of him, growing slightly aggravated.

"Fuck, I don't know," he muttered, eventually just grabbing a random box, "This one, I guess."

~

Gerard returned to the store two days later, when he was certain that you would be at work. He spotted you as soon as he stepped foot inside and immediately ran over to you.

"(Y/N)!"

You jumped a bit, surprised, and almost dropped the supplies you were restocking.

"Woah, hey there," you giggled as you looked at him.

"Hi," he huffed, "Okay, look, I've had these feelings for you for a while now, and I'll admit that at first, I was too scared to ask you out 'cause, ya know, every time I even think about doing it I get all clammy and nervous and shit because you're, like, super pretty and funny and cute and way out of my league. And then a few days ago I was dyeing my hair and thinking about how happy I am that I chose to come to this particular store for dye and met you and I thought, fuck it, I'm gonna ask you on a date even if I pass out and judging by how lightheaded I'm feeling right now, that's gonna be very soon, so..." he drew in a deep breath and looked at you with hopeful eyes, "Would you please go out with me?"

Incredibly confused at this point in time, you carefully set down the products in your hands and knitted your brows. "Wait, I'm confused. Are you asking me out on a date different to the one from the note? Or are you talking about the same one?"

It was Gerard's turn to be confused now; he had no idea what you were talking about. "What note?"

"It was waiting for me when I got to work this morning." You reached into your pant pocket, pulled out a piece of paper and handed it over to him. He carefully unfolded it and read what was written inside.

"Dear (Y/N),

Listen, so, I've been into you for a super long time now, but because I'm a total pussy and can't ask you out in person, I'm writing this letter.

I know how much you like Fall Out Boy and since I didn't take my friends' advice and invite you to their album release party, I got them to organise a show here at the end of the month.

I guess what I'm saying here is, I'd really like it if you'd come with me. It'll be good, I promise.

Um, yeah. I hope you'll say yes but if you don't, I get it. No hard feelings. I'll just go back to liking you from afar.

Wait, that sounded weird. I shouldn't have written that.

But yeah.

Please say yes.

-Gerard"

"Those fuckers," he whispered under his breath, mortified at his band mates and their forwardness.

"So it wasn't you who sent it?" you questioned; the disappointment was evident in your voice and in your expression.

"My friends did," he sighed, closing his eyes and stuffing the letter into his pocket.

"Does that mean that Fall Out Boy aren't playing a show here?"

"No, they most probably are," Gerard ran a hand through his hair, "I'm so sorry. I made the grave mistake of telling the guys that I'm into you, and they took matters into their own hands."

"Kudos to them," you smirked, taking steps towards him, "I have to admit, I-"

It was then that you noticed his new hair colour.

"Oh wow," you gushed, "Nice one."

"Hm?" Gerard was puzzled for a moment before remembering that he had dyed his hair red yesterday, "Oh, yeah. You weren't here to help me choose so I just took a random box."

"Well you're working it," you smirked.

"Thank you," he smiled shyly, looking down at his quivering hands before looking up at you through his eyelashes, "So, uh, about that date..."

"I'd love to go on a date with you, Gerard," you giggled, moving forward so that you could wrap your arms around him in a tight hug.

He sighed and closed his eyes in relief as he wrapped his arms around you and hugged you tighter. "And they said no good would come from me continuously dyeing my hair."

"'They' are idiots," you laughed, pulling back and running your hand through his fiery locks, "Even though I had nothing to do with it, I have to admit that red was a pretty good choice. It's definitely my favourite colour on you."

"If this is your favourite, then it's settled," he nodded curtly.

"What is?" you quizzed.

"I'm never changing the colour ever again."

_______________________________

Thank you for reading x