I got to go back to school the next day. I got up early and showered before on something cute, but pretty comfortable. Of course, I wore my black, heeled boots. I hopped down the stairs and into the kitchen where breakfast waited on the kitchen table. The others had left last night when they were sure I was okay. I ate breakfast and grabbed the lunch Patrick had packed for me. I put it with my new bag by the door and went back upstairs to brush my teeth and do my hair and makeup. I still kept my makeup simple, but I got closer to my normal look. I just straightened my hair and left it down. I hadn't felt like doing much with it. I heard Patrick yell that it was time to go from downstairs, so I went down the stair, grabbed my bag and lunch, and met Patrick in the car. I sat in the front seat next to him and we took off.
"How are you feeling this morning?" he asked while we drove.
"Good," I replied with a smile.
"If you feel sick at all or like something isn't right, you call me straight away," he said. "Don't hesitate to call me, Lyra." I nodded.
"Okay," I replied. We pulled up in front of the school and he smiled at me.
"Be good, don't cause trouble, do good in your classes," he said as I got out. "And say hello to the girls for me!" I nodded and smiled before shutting the car door. I went into the school where Chloe was waiting just inside the door. She screamed excitedly and hugged me.
"You're back!" she exclaimed.
"Yeah, I am," I laughed.
"I thought you were coming back yesterday?" she asked.
"I was supposed to, but I spent most of yesterday throwing up," I said, disgusted by the memory.
"Are you okay?" Chloe asked, concerned.
"Yeah, it was probably a stomach bug or the flu," I said, smiling. "I'm better now. Why were you waiting for me?"
"I figured you'd forgotten where your locker was after being gone so long," Chloe laughed.
"Well you were right," I laughed.
"Let's go," she laughed, grabbing my arm. We walked arm in arm, laughing, to our lockers. We grabbed the books we needed and headed to math. We walked in and Mr. Carson smiled at me.
"Welcome back, Miss Gaine," he smiled. I smiled back and took a seat next to Chloe like I had when I first came to this school.
I had my full attention on the teachers in all of my classes that morning so I wouldn't be behind any more than I already was. At lunch, I met Chloe at our lockers. I put my books away, grabbed my lunch, and walked with Chloe to the lunch room. We sat with Danni and Summer and ate while laughing and talking. At the end of the day, I walked out to Patrick's car. Chloe, Danni, and Summer waved to us while we pulled out of the parking lot.
"How was your first day back?" Patrick asked, smiling.
"It was good," I replied with a smile. "I got a little tired before lunch, but I was fine after I ate. Chloe made me eat everything. I got to all of my classes without a problem."
"That's good," he smiled. "Just make sure you don't over do it. We don't need any more problems to come up." We laughed and drove the rest of the way singing loudly to the radio. We had almost made it home when a Gwen Stephanie song came on. Patrick changed it quickly, but a tear slipped down my cheek. I wiped it away and held back the urge to throw up.
We got home and I went upstairs. I went into my bathroom and threw up a little in the toilet. Then I splashed cold water on my face and dried it with a towel. I went back downstairs and sat in the kitchen with a soda and some fruit while I did my homework. Patrick didn't ask questions.
"I'll be upstairs in the music room if you need me," he said. "You're welcome to join me when you finish, if you want." I nodded and did my homework. I finished quickly and went upstairs with the can of soda after putting my plate in the dishwasher. I heard Patrick working on a song in the music room. He was trying to make sheet music to go with the lyrics Pete had given him yesterday before he'd left, I knew that. I took the soda can in and set on the table.
"Give me that," I laughed. I took the lyric sheet and sat at the drum set. "Listen to this." I started a beat and Patrick added to it with guitar. When we'd finished, Patrick wrote down everything he'd played and I'd written down mine. "So what does Pete call this one?"
"Last of the Real Ones for the next album," Patrick replied.
"Nice," I said. "I like the lyrics. I think we can make this a good one if we work together on sheet music."
"I'll need your help," he laughed. "I always have trouble putting the sheet music with the lyrics. It never sounds right."
"Obviously you aren't that bad if you've had four studio albums that were all pretty successful," I laughed. "And you're about to have one more."
"What do you say we take that friend of yours from the music store the first copy of our new album?" Patrick asked with a smile.
"Really?" I asked. I smiled. "He'd love it."
"Then let's go!" Patrick said. "We recorded your song shortly after you'd come home from the hospital. I got the first copy and it sounds great. We can listen to it on the drive." We rushed out to the car and Patrick popped in the new CD. We listened to all the amazing songs on the drive. Mine turned out really good, I thought. It suited Patrick's voice perfectly.
When we finally got there, I popped the CD back into the case and we got out of the car. I walked in and saw the cashier, Devon, at his usual post. I walked up casually and set the CD on the counter.
"I'd like to buy this CD, please," I said in a voice that wouldn't sound like my own. He didn't look at my face and just grabbed the CD. He looked confused.
"I'm sorry, ma'am, I've never seen or heard of this track," he said in utter confusion.
"Don't call me ma'am, Devon," I laughed. "You make me sound old." He looked up and smiled.
"Hey, Lyra! I haven't seen you in forever!" he smiled. He walked around the counter and hugged me.
"Sorry about that," I said. "I got adopted, though! I meant to come sooner but then Kendall and Aleah happened again. I ended up in the hospital for like almost two months or something."
"Are you okay?" he asked. "Does your new family take care of you? Are they here?"
"He's here," I smiled. "And he takes very good care of me. His friends are like my family, too. I think you've heard of them."
"What's with this CD?" he asked, holding up the track I'd given him. "I see it's Fall Out Boy, but I've never heard of this album."
"Just a present from my new family," I smiled. "I want you to meet him." I motioned for Patrick, who was casually browsing a shelf. He came up and smiled at Devon.
"Patrick," Patrick introduced. "Lyra's told me a lot about you." Devon was speechless.
"Listen to the track!" I said excitedly. "It's their new album. It's amazing!"
"Lyra even wrote one of the songs," Patrick said, beaming. "It's the song we named the album after."
"You wrote a song that Fall Out Boy, our absolute favorite band, put on their new album!" Devon said. I nodded with a huge smile.
"That's the very first copy," I smiled. "Put it on the speakers!" He put it in the CD player that was connected to the speakers. The songs played. American Beauty/American Psycho was the second song on the album.
"This song is amazing," Devon said. "What's it called?"
"This one is American Beauty/American Psycho," Patrick said. "It's Lyra's song."
"Wow," he said, amazed. "I can't believe you're giving me the very first copy."
"Don't sell it," I laughed. "More copies will be delivered straight here. You don't have to try and buy any from other stores. I'll make sure you get all the new Fall Out Boy and Panic! At The Disco CDs delivered straight to you."
"So wait, you know all of Fall Out Boy AND Panic!?" Devon asked.
"I sure do," I smiled. "I also got to meet Brendon's wife, Sarah. Pete, Andy, and Joe are great. I'll have to bring them sometime so you can meet them, too."
"You would really do that?" Devon asked. I nodded. I was glad I got to see Devon again. I missed talking to him.
"We'd best get going soon, Lyra," Patrick said. "Do you want to buy any albums before we leave?" I nodded and went to browse the Punk Rock shelves. I ended up getting an Infinity on High CD from Fall Out Boy, a new Green Day CD, and A Fever You Can't Sweat Out from Panic! CD. Devon rang us up and we talked while he did it before Patrick and I took my new albums and left the store, promise to come back soon for a visit.
As we drove away, Patrick kept the radio off. I think he was nervous about what had happened earlier that day.
"Devon seems nice," he commented as we drove back.
"He's a great friend," I said. "He's hilarious, too. Joe would really like him. He was the person I talked to before I had you and the guys. He was the only one who believed me. He called the police several times for me when I'd come in with a black eye or a new scar. The police never found any evidence that could be used against the orphanage, though. The staff and kids always found a way to cover it up and get rid of any evidence."
"It's great that you found someone you could talk to when you didn't have anyone else," Patrick smiled. We pulled into the driveway and Patrick turned off the car, but he didn't make to get out. I looked at him.
"Patrick? Are you okay?" I asked. He put his head on the steering wheel and just sat there.
"I feel like I'm not doing this right," he whispered.
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"You're a fourteen year old girl," he said. "You live alone with me. You deserve better than this. You deserve more than what I can give you by myself."
"Patrick, I have everything I could ever ask for," I said. "You aren't failing."
"You deserve a mother and a father," he said. "I can't give you that."
"I don't need anyone else," I said. "If you're worried about me not having a mother figure or whatever, I have Sarah. I have everyone and everything I need." He nodded and lifted his head. He looked at me. He leaned over and hugged me.
"I want you to live with Sarah and Brendon," he whispered. "That way you can have a real family.