Mikey sat on the end of Gerard's bed, fiddling with the corner of his brother's bedsheets as Gerard sat on the floor, drawing in his notebook.
"What'd you come here for then, Mikes?" Gerard looked up at Mikey, smiling at the corners of his mouth as he flicked hair out his face.
Mikey looked down at his feet, nervous, but he wasn't sure why.
He always came to his brother when he had a problem, and they'd talk about it seriously. Their closeness was unbelievable and made most families jealous. But for once Mikey was just too nervous; he was too scared to talk about love, about Pete.
He didn't love Pete, he knew that, but he still got a knot in his stomach every time he looked at the boy. He still really, really liked Pete, and this meant he obviously really cared for him. And Mikey could definitely tell something was up.
"Gerard, what's going on?" Mikey sighed, he realised he may have known if he actually hung out with his friends, but he decided staying away might be the best option. Mainly because he was too scared to face Pete. He felt like a giant wuss.
"With what?" Gerard raised an eyebrow. Mikey scratched the back of his neck awkwardly and mumbled,
"Pete. He's acting all... funny."
Gerard's face dropped immediately to a serious expression, eyes wide and mouth in a line.
"Mikey, do you still like Pete?"
Mikey definitely still liked Pete.
He spent nearly every moment thinking about Pete, just wishing he could grab Pete and hold him close, kiss him, talk to him, just hold his hand tight. It was painful spending this time away from Pete.
But Mikey was scared. He was so fucking scared.
"Yeah... I really do." Mikey confessed, looking down again, worried about what Gerard was going to say.
Mikey felt the bed shift next to him as Gerard sat, then he placed two fingers under Mikey's chin to force him to look into his eyes.
"You need to tell him. Just talk to him, please. I can tell its killing you, and for God's sake, it's killing us, but it's mostly killing Pete."
Mikey grumbled in defeat. He knew his fears were really stupid, but weren't everyone's?
"Fine. I'll talk to him."
+
Maths homework was the last thing Pete was going to do, even though he was extremely bored and had nothing better to do. So he just lay on his bed, looking up at the ceiling covered in glow in the dark stars.
Pete giggled as he remembered putting them up when he was six, but he's just too lazy to take them off now.
It must have been about ten minutes before Pete got bored of nostalgia and was about to sit up, but a sudden phone chime made him jump and he hit his head on the wall.
He reached for his phone, while mumbling curses under his breath, and checked his text.
He almost jumped again when he saw who it was from.
Mikey Way, the guy who had been avoiding him for what felt like forever, had just texted Pete, and needless to say he was very excited.
hey pete, was wondering if u wanted to meet in the park at 3. mikey
Pete's heart leapt from his chest as he quickly tapped out a response, and he couldn't help but grin stupidly.
sure. see u in ten mins, pete xo
+
Mikey was watching the icy concrete underneath him, bored with waiting in the cold. Luckily he wore a thick black coat, but as he looked up he saw a not so lucky figure across the street.
Pete was only in his t shirt and jeans and was visibly shivering, and was wishing he had brought a hoodie at the very least.
Mikey looked over at the smaller boy who had walked toward him and then stood awkwardly next to him.
"Hey." Mikey broke the silence, eager to talk to Pete. Hell, he wanted to grab Pete's face and kiss him as soon as possible.
"Hey." Pete breathed out a response, smiling softly. He was happy to be finally talking to Mikey.
"So, I wanted to say I'm really sorry, for everything. I wish I never-" Mikey rambled, wanting to get his message across quickly, but Pete interrupted, placing a hand on Mikey's cold blushing cheek.
"It's okay, I forgive you."
The pair smiled at each other, looking into the other's eyes. Instinctively, Mikey leaned in to kiss Pete, making both of their hearts beat fast, and softly pressed his lips against Pete's. Pete kissed back for a second, but pulled away before anything else happened.
He felt a small pang of guilt as Mikey leaned back, hurt and confusion in his eyes.
Now was the perfect time to tell him how he felt, after the many days of his friends bugging him about it.
"What's wrong, Pete?" Mikey fiddled with his hands, worried he had done something that messed everything up again.
Pete reached over and held Mikey's hands, stroking his cold knuckles.
"Mikey there's... there's something I have to tell you..." Pete was now shivering, not from the cold, but from the nerves.
Mikey nodded his head, looking more than slightly worried. Pete breathed heavily, looking at the beautiful boy in front of him. He leaned closer to Mikey, and strained a smile, before putting on a serious expression.
It was going to be okay.
"I love you, Mikey Way."
Frozen in shock, Mikey stood, facing Pete, who was smiling nervously.
Mikey didn't know what to say. So he settled with the first thing that came to mind.
"What the fuck?"
Pete bit his lip and held onto Mikey's hands tighter, but Mikey pulled his hands away, leaning back and squinting as if he was examining Pete's brain.
"I said I love you. Because I am in love with you. I really fucking missed you, Mikey."
Pete sighed. This wasn't exactly going as he hoped, but nothing ever did. He had the worst luck.
Mikey stood still and silently, and his poker face made it impossible for Pete to work out how he felt, only making Pete more nervous.
After a long pause, Mikey finally spoke up, after swallowing.
"Uh, well... that's cool, I guess."
Pete didn't know what to feel, whether he should jump into the sun or off a bridge. He stared at Mikey, who stared back, but with a completely different emotion shown in his eyes. At least Mikey was accepting? He thought, trying to find positives in this awkward situation.
It was so awkward, Pete considered just running away, it would be less weirder than this.
"Well, I better go, but I'll see you tomorrow?" Mikey pulled at his coat, wanting to leave.
Pete was heartbroken. Mikey was clearly uncomfortable, and it was all Pete's fault.
Mikey looked down at the small shivering boy, who was still in just his t-shirt and jeans, so he took off his coat completely, placing it over Pete's shoulders. Pete smiled up at Mikey, heartbreak clear in his watery eyes.
"Sure. See you." His voice cracked, and a single tear ran down his cheek.
Mikey's heart hurt as he saw this, he really liked Pete, he just wasn't sure how to react to Pete's confession. Especially since he couldn't lie and say the same thing back.
He was shit at human interaction sometimes.
Before he could help it, more tears fell down Pete's face. He was useless at hiding his feelings, which was one of the worst qualities to have. He turned away, not wanting to embarrass himself in front of the boy he loved.
It was weird, love can really change a person.
Pete attempted to pull the jacket on tighter as he walked off, but it was gently pushed back as Mikey pulled him back, turning Pete to face him. He gently kissed the tears off Pete's face, then moved his lips to Pete's for a moment.
Pete smiled, this boy was just perfect.
"I'll see you tomorrow, okay?" Mikey smiled at Pete, who nodded while he wiped his eyes.
He had a feeling things were going to be okay. This wasn't love Mikey gave him, but it was probably the next best thing.
+
Brendon definitely didn't think things were going okay, however. He hadn't talked to Ryan since his party. He had tried to call him everyday for about a month now, and every time Brendon tries to talk to Ryan in school, he just turns and runs the other way.
Brendon was confused beyond measure. He can't remember doing anything wrong, he had strained his mind so many times trying to remember his party. He assumed he had done something wrong then, but he was just too fucking wasted and now he couldn't remember what he did.
All he could remember was showing everyone Mikey and Pete aggressively making out in his room, half naked. He laughed at the memory, mostly on the horror on their friend's faces and the embarrassment on the couple's faces.
It was Brendon's job, he always messed things up for everyone. He loved doing it, he loved everyone's reactions, and he didn't care if they hated him for it. He always found it hilarious.
But now, he had messed things up in his relationship, and suddenly things didn't seem so hilarious anymore.
He had tried to call Ryan for the eleventh time today, of course with still no answer. Brendon sighed, throwing his phone on his bed, fed up with Ryan. He was holding such a big grudge, and Brendon was so close to just giving up altogether.
But he at least wanted to find out what he did, first.
Taking a deep breath in, Brendon picked up the phone to call Spencer, he had never cared about something so much, and these feelings were alien to him. He needed advice from a close friend.
"Hello?" Spencer's voice was muffled across the line.
"Spencer? Do you have any idea what's going on with Ryan?" Brendon rushed straight to the point, not wanting to waste any time.
He heard Spencer sigh loudly, before he spoke again,
"You really have no idea what you did, do you?"
Brendon shook his head quickly, then realised that Spencer couldn't see him, so, embarrassed, he mumbled,
"No."
Another sigh, followed by some quiet noises, before Spencer spoke up again,
"Well, Ryan's with me right now, want to come over and talk to him?"
Brendon shot up on his feet, this could finally be his first time talking to Ryan in a month, even if he was going to get screamed at. He quickly replied to Spencer, saying he was going right over.
He hung up, and ran a finger through his hair, before quickly rushing out the door to the house two blocks down.
+
Gerard wasn't really surprised when he came home from Frank's house to see Mikey on the couch, playing videogames. He threw himself down beside his brother, and snatched the Doritos off the table, munching as Mikey paused the game and looked at him in disgust.
"So, how'd it go with Pete?" Gerard smirked as he lay across the couch, and settled his legs over Mikey's skinny lap. Mikey looked down at Gerard's dirty boots with faint horror in his wide eyes as he replied,
"Okay, I guess."
"You guys back together then?"
Mikey paused, looking up in wonder, trying to recount the day. He suddenly snapped his gaze to Gerard, and muttered,
"He told me he loves me." Mikey wasn't sure what to think of this. He could still date Pete, but he'd probably feel very awkward, like he was leading Pete on or something.
"So... did you say it back?" Gerard dug for the details, wanting the drama.
Mikey sighed, sometimes his brother was such a drama queen.
"No."
"Oh shit." Gerard sighed. Pete had been thinking about Mikey non-stop, and after they'd all encouraged him to confess, he'd been turned down. Kind of.
"But you're dating again, right?" Gerard really didn't want to see them both upset, because they obviously both had feelings for each other, even if one's were just more than the other's. And the group also missed having Mikey there, even if it was just him sitting, strumming his bass in the corner.
Mikey thought about Gerard's question for a moment. He wanted to date Pete, and the fact that Pete loves him, probably means that he felt the same way.
"I guess so."
+
"So you told him?" Patrick's excited voice rang down the phone, and Pete held the phone away from his ear, laughing.
"Yeah, I did."
"So what did he say?"
"He didn't really say anything. But I think we're on good terms, he kissed me before he left." Pete smiled as he remembered the moment, knowing the small kiss had meant enough. Mikey still liked him after a month, and Pete felt like himself again, not constantly miserable.
Patrick squealed down the line, clearly happy about this news.
"Progress!" He shouted before hanging up.
Pete lay on his bed, laughing at his over excited best friend. But Pete also felt over excited. And he finally felt happy for the first time since Mikey broke up with him.
And he didn't care that he felt like an eleven year old obsessing over her first crush, because things were finally going his way. And hopefully, they'd stay that way.