Listen (Patrick Stump / Fall Out Boy Fanfic)

Chapter 32 - We Could Be Immortals

 Hey guys! The video I reference in this chapter can be found here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/cochlear-implant-proposal-hear_us_56eac481e4b065e2e3d89b6f

Wattpad was being a pain and not letting me upload it, so I'm just leaving you with the link to the article! Enjoy!

          In our last month of touring, Pete came to me with an idea that just might be his best idea to date. It was early in the morning, and Andy, Joe, and Aria had gone out to breakfast. Pete and I had decided to stay back because I was writing a new song, and Pete had been on his laptop, furiously typing away. I'd assumed he was writing as well, but apparently, I was wrong. He was researching the cause of Aria's deafness and the many medical procedures that could somewhat alleviate or even "cure" her deafness. He didn't say a word to me until he found a video of a woman hearing her boyfriend for the first time, and he proposed to her, right there in the doctor's office.

I was sitting at the breakfast table, my notebook in front of me, with a few random lines written down. I scrawled down one more, smirking slightly as I thought of Aria.

We could be immortals, immortals
Just not for long, for long.
And live with me forever now,
You pull the blackout curtains down
Just not for long, for long.

I heard Pete's feet hit the floor as he jumped down from his bunk, and I also heard him curse under his breath as he inevitably ran into the side of the bunks in his hurry. I was writing another line when he came crashing into the front room.

I'll be the watcher of the eternal flame.
I'll be the guard dog of all your fever dreams.

"Patrick!" Pete screeched, nearly slamming his laptop down on the other side of the table. "You need to see this!"

"See what, Pete?" I sighed, reluctantly pushing my notebook to the side. He quickly spun his laptop around and I was faced with the video. He hit play, and I watched with slight confusion and emotion as the woman heard her own voice for the first time, as well as her boyfriend's. As he moved to propose to her, my heart leapt into my throat. "Pete," I sighed, "Why are you showing me this?"

"Because!" Pete gasped, "Aria needs to hear your voice!"

"She can't, Pete," I muttered, reaching for my notebook again, "I don't even know where to go for something like this. And she would never let me pay for it."

"You're not going to," Pete stated, pulling his laptop back. "Andy, Joe and I will. It'll be our wedding gift to you guys. She needs to hear your voice, Patrick. I want her to hear you sing."

I looked up at him thoughtfully. "No," I stated, "You are not spending that much on her. I'll do it, I'll talk to her about it, and –"

"Shut up and let me do this for you," Pete snapped, "I've been researching it all morning, and the three of us can afford it with no problem." I stared at him for a long moment, unsure of what to say, and then he smiled. "She'll hear you read your vows, Patrick."

My heart broke at that, my eyes filled with tears, and I buried my face in my hands. Pete reached across the table and gently grabbed my arm. Before I knew it, I was crying, actually crying. There was a chance, a small chance, that Aria would be able to hear me one day. Pete held onto my arm until I finally lifted my head, running my hands over my face. "We only have a month and a half until the wedding," I reminded him, my heart dropping just a little bit at my own realization. "You don't have much time to find a doctor."