five
Spooky Jim: I'm sorry, Gerard
gerard way: what
gerard way: why
Josh had messaged Gerard as soon as he got home. He couldn't bear to be in the same room as Gerard without feeling guilty as hell, even if it meant making out with Tyler.
Spooky Jim: You tried to
Spooky Jim: Yanno
gerard way: i tried to kill myself, i know
gerard way: i was there
gerard way: it wasn't your fault, dun
Josh was choking up and trying not to cry. The last time Gerard had tried he had been in the hospital for two weeks. Josh had visited him every day. He'd even tried praying. This time, Josh hadn't even known.
Spooky Jim: I let you leave
gerard way: it wasn't your fault josh, i promise. i would have just done it the next day or something. i promise. it wasn't your fault. i'm sorry for scaring you.
Spooky Jim: You should have talked to me
gerard way: i know
Josh was crying. He still felt guilty. Still felt like it was his fault. He fell asleep with his face streaked with tears.
When he woke up he saw a kik notification.
TyJo: be my boyfriend?
Josh turned off his phone.
He wanted to be with Tyler. But he didn't want to hurt him, and Josh always had a way of saying something mean, or seeming like he was only in relationships for sex- because usually, he was. But Tyler wasn't really like that for him. Josh needed time to think. And he sure as hell wasn't going to start dating someone over a fucking text message. Seriously, Tyler?
-
It was 8:02 when Tyler pulled into Gerard's driveway, and it was only seconds later that Gerard was in the passengers seat. "You're late," Gerard said, glaring at him. This kind of comment would usually make Tyler nervous, but he swallowed it down because he was starting to realize that that was just how Gerard acted.
"I like the hair," Tyler commented as he pulled out of the driveway, glancing at Josh's house briefly. Gerard was wearing incredibly tight, all black clothing and was sporting a red dye job.
Gerard grinned. "It pissed my dad off, so I did it. Shaved half of Mikey's head, too," he told the other boy, leaning against the window. "I like the mom van. Very 2008. Very soccer. I thought you were a basketball family."
Tyler couldn't help but laugh. "It's not my car, alright?"
"I got that."
The rest of the ride was spent with Gerard flipping through the CDs in Tyler's car and no doubt criticizing them; but he didn't say anything out loud, which Tyler was grateful for. The coffee shop they pulled into was small, cozy looking, and Tyler had never been there.
"Of course you haven't," Gerard said when Tyler informed him of that fact. "No reason for a jock to come here. They do shows, bands and slam poets and stuff like that. At night, I mean. Plus, my friend works here and I have to ask her something."
Tyler heard someone yell, "Way!" when they walked in, and he saw a pretty girl with a teal pixie cut grinning at them from behind the cash register.
"Halsey," Gerard greeted, stopping at the counter and resting his elbows on the marble.
"The usual, I assume?" she asked, and Gerard nodded. The girl then looked expectantly at Tyler. "Tyler Joseph, what would you like?"
"How do you know who I-"
"You play basketball," Halsey reminded him.
Tyler always forgot that part. "Oh, right. Um, I'll have, uh, do you just have hot chocolate?"
The girl hid her laugh behind a pale hand and said, "absolutely. Those will be out in a minute."
Gerard put a bill down on the counter, and normally Tyler would protest, but Gerard seemed like the type who won most arguments, so Tyler just let him pay.
"So," Gerard drawled, "how's Debby?"
"Hot," the girl said while pouring coffee over ice. She took one look at Gerard's scowl and said, "and she's really sweet. Thanks for getting me her number."
"That's more like it," Gerard mumbled, taking the black iced coffee that Halsey handed to him.
"And can I keep this change?" Halsey asked with a laugh as Tyler took his hot chocolate from the counter.
"You're robbing me," Gerard muttered. He still walked away without his change, though.
"So," the now redhead said as soon as they sat down. "Tell me about yourself, Joseph."
Tyler blew on his hot chocolate. "Uh, like what?"
"You know, your hopes and dreams or whatever. Are we to that level of friendship?" Gerard asked, squinting. "Okay, how about your family? Do you all play basketball?"
Tyler took a sip of hot chocolate and winced at the burn. Gerard didn't try to hide his smirk. "Uh, no. My brother Zack does, but my other brother and my sister don't. My brother Jay plays drums. And my sister, Madison, she's a dancer. What about you?"
"I just have Mikey," Gerard said, taking a pause to drink some of the bitter coffee. "He can be a dipshit sometimes, but he's really a sweet kid, usually. Are you really into that whole thing? You know, the basketball?"
Tyler was slightly taken aback by the question- no one had ever really asked him. "I don't hate it. It's pretty fun, I guess I'd just probably rather be doing other things."
Gerard's eyes lit up a bit with curiosity. "Like what?"
"Music, I guess," Tyler said, looking down and taking a swig of hot chocolate so he wouldn't have to see Gerard's reaction.
"Oh, right! Josh told me you're really good. That's wicked." Tyler felt himself blush at the mention of Josh. "Me and Mikey fuck around with music a lot but we don't really have a band. Yet."
They talked about music for a while before Tyler went home briefly to change and then they drove to the game.
Cody came up to him in the locker room and started babbling. Like usual. "I really hope coach doesn't bench me this game I really want to play I've been working on my shots and I really think I could get a few but I have some trouble with passing and maybe I should just lift more but I already lift every day and it's not working."
All of his teammates either gave him a smirk or a sympathetic look as Cody trailed him.
The game went by in a blur. He knew they were doing well. He knew Cody was benched. He knew he'd occasionally hear Gerard shout things, and he knew the refs got angry, but he didn't get kicked out until there were only five minutes left in the game and he yelled, "Tyler Joseph is my fucking boy and he is tearing this shit up!"
Tyler found him sitting outside talking to the moms who ran the snack bar. He looked smug as all hell.
"Good job," Tyler said to him on the car ride to Gerard's house.
"It was my pleasure," he'd said when he got out of the car.
It was noon by the time Tyler got home and Josh still hadn't replied.
"You left early this morning," his dad commented while Tyler was helping his mom make sandwiches for lunch.
"My friend wanted to get coffee before the game," Tyler told him, smiling slightly.
"A basketball friend?" his dad asked, looking up from the paper.
"No," Tyler told him. He didn't really see any reason to lie. "He came to the game, though."
"I'm glad you're making new friends. Was it that Joshua boy?" his mom asked.
Tyler smiled- he was glad his mom at least liked Josh. "No, but they're friends. His name is Gerard."
"Well, these new boys that you're friends with seem sweet. And less loud than basketball players."
Tyler snorted. Gerard was pretty damn loud, after all.
"Invite them over for dinner tonight, would you?"
Tyler was kind of worried.
His mom had met Josh. She'd loved Josh. But he'd never seen Gerard be anything but abrasive. And his dad was home. His dad wasn't as judgmental as some preachers. He didn't hate tattoos as long as they weren't visible. Piercings didn't bother him as long as they weren't everywhere. But Tyler was nervous nonetheless.
Gerard and Josh had promised him they would dress nicely.