Mixtape For The End of the World

22. Sexy Stranger #3 attempts to throw a rotten tomato...

22. Sexy Stranger #3 attempts to throw a rotten tomato at Dallon Weekes' face and misses.

"This is it," Brendon said, sobbing as Ryan, Gabe, and I all got ready to go to I Don't Know How But They Found Me's farewell concert. "The world is ending, and there's nothing that we can do about it."

Gabe rolled his eyes. "Brendon, your favorite band breaking up is not the end of the world," he said. "On the other hand, if a sexy stranger throws a rotten tomato at Dallon's face tonight and misses, that might be the end of the world. We should figure out how to prevent that from happening."

It had been four days since Gabe and Joe had beaten up the Neo-Nazis at Fall Out Bros., and given that iDKHOW was breaking up, we could stop Gabe from dying and the world from ending if we could just keep Gabe's vision from coming true that night. It wasn't like Sexy Stranger #3, whoever they were, would have another opportunity to launch rotten fruit at Dallon Weekes.

"What does the sexy stranger look like?" I asked. "Maybe we could find a way to keep them from coming into the venue in the first place."

"Sexy Stranger #3 has eyes, ears, a mouth, a nose, two arms, and two legs," Gabe said.

"Most humans look like that," Ryan pointed out.

"I'm not very good at describing people!" Gabe exclaimed.

"What were they wearing?" Ryan asked.

"Sexy Stranger #3 was wearing shorts, socks, and a hat," Gabe said.

"Wasn't Patrick Stump wearing shorts, socks, and a hat at the Fourth of July bonfire?" Ryan said.

"It's not Patrick," I said. "Patrick is Sexy Stranger #1. He can't also be Sexy Stranger #3."

"Sexy Stranger #3 definitely wasn't Patrick, or anyone that I already know," Gabe said.

"This isn't going anywhere," Ryan said. "We should try a different approach. Maybe we could find some way to keep people from bringing rotten tomatoes to the venue."

All of a sudden, an idea sparked in Gabe's mind. I could see it in the way that his eyes lit up. "I have a plan," he said.

A little while later, we all arrived at the venue. I adjusted my hat and my official-looking security badge, hoping that the other people going to the concert would fall for our disguises. "Why are we doing this again?" I asked Gabe.

"Pete, you're a security guard," Gabe said. "Don't ask questions, and just do your job."

Gabe, Ryan, Brendon, and I stood next to the door, waiting for our fellow music fans to arrive. The first person to show up at the venue just walked by, ignoring us. "Ma'am!" I shouted. "We need to check your bag!"

"Oh, I'm sorry," the woman said. "I'm the lead singer's mom - Dallon didn't tell me that there would be security guards here."

She walked back to me and handed me her bag. I quickly looked through it, and when I saw that there was a box of homemade cookies but no rotten fruit, I gave the bag back to Mrs. Weekes. "Enjoy the show," I said, smiling.

The routine continued on, but not a lot of people were coming to iDKHOW's final show. "No one came to see them except their mom and dad," Brendon said sadly.

"It's still early, Brendon," Ryan said. "The show doesn't start for another hour."

All of a sudden, Ryan Seaman entered the venue. He gave us a strange look and then walked past us. "Should I stop him?" I whispered to Gabe.

"Yes, just to be safe," Gabe said. "He's not Sexy Stranger #3, but he could still have a rotten tomato with him."

"Sir!" I shouted. "We need to check your bag!"