Metronome (FOB FanFic ft. Tyler Joseph)

Chapter 22

My eyes threatened to close countless times as I fought to stay awake. Patrick and I were sitting in my bed, his back against the headboard and my head resting on his lap. My body was curled up beside him and my eyes were red and puffy from shedding the tears I'd held back for so long.

As the two of us sat there in silence, aside from his quiet humming, Patrick's gaze traveled around the room, taking note of all of the mementos I still had from Tyler's and my relationship. The picture frames showcasing photographs of us, varying from pictures of us together - taken at concerts or parties - to pictures of either just me or Tyler, usually captured when we were just sitting  around, bored out of our minds. The skeleton hoodie hanging in my opened closet, and the pair of white, round sunglasses sitting on the dresser. But then his gazing stopped, when his eyes locked on the blanket I had draped over something sitting in the corner.

He raised an eyebrow out of curiosity and slowly slipped his arm out from around me, causing my head to drop to the mattress as I succumbed to the exhaustion that had been slowly consuming me as the night drew on. He swung his legs over the side of my bed and carefully got out, walking over and grasping the blanket, tearing it off to reveal the keyboard I couldn't bare to look at anymore. It was hard enough seeing it every morning after Tyler left me. It was even harder after he died.

Patrick gasped at the instrument - unaware of its significance - and pulled out the chair that had been tucked underneath the electronic piano, lowering himself down in it and looking down at the keys. A smirk crawled onto his face as clasped his hands together and extended them out in front of him, cracking his fingers before placing his hands down on the keys.

"Whenever you find it
It's none of my business
Now wherever you go, go, go
It's not my concern..."

He glanced back over his shoulder at me, continuing to play and sing softly.

"But for a second your attention just belonged to me
And it passed so fast it just fractured all my cool..."

He turned back around and sang a little louder, more passionately.

"I'm not brokenhearted
I'm just kinda-"

Just then, his phone began to ring, cutting his singing short and vibrating my entire nightstand. Patrick panicked and scrambled out of the chair, tripping over his feet and falling to his hands and knees. He crawled over to the nightstand and picked it up, seeing that his friend who suggested he take the opening for the music professor was calling him. He raised an eyebrow and answered the call, putting the phone up to his ear and whispering, "Hello?"

"Patrick, where the hell are you?"

"I-I'm at a friend's," He stammered, glancing over the edge of the bed at me, making sure his phone or his playing hadn't woken me up. But I was out.

"Well you better tell your friend you've got to go, because the head of the university's looking for you. And it doesn't sound like it's to tell you you've been doing a good job and you're getting a raise."

The singer's eyebrows furrowed together, "What?"

*****

I approached the coffee shop for the first time since his death, dreading the day I had ahead of me. It didn't help that I'd woken up to Patrick completely missing. I thought I was confused when I woke up alone and didn't remember what happened the night before. But I was even more confused when I woke up alone and did. I didn't remember doing anything to send Patrick away. But apparently I did. And I didn't even realize it.

I pulled my keys out and unlocked the door, pushing it in and stepping inside to find Joe already there, pacing back and forth in front of the counter, waiting for me to arrive.

I chuckled, "Joe, what are you doing here? Second thought, how did you get in?" He followed me into the break room where I punched in and took my jacket off.

"Care to explain to me why Patrick called me last and ranted to me for nearly an hour about how you fucked everything up for him?" He asked me, avoiding answering my questions.

I hung my jacket up on its designated hook, "What are you talking about?"

"He lost his job, Evie!"

My eyes widened.

"Yeah. Thanks to you, he lost his job," Joe crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against the threshold in between the café and the break room, keeping the door open, "I guess one of his students came forward and said that he was having an affair with another student. The person didn't say who the student was, but I think it's pretty obvious who the student they're talking about is."

I brought my hand to my face and rubbed the bridge of my nose, squeezing my eyes shut as regret began to build inside of me.

"I thought you were just learning how to play piano from him!" He snapped at me, walking in and causing the door to start swinging back and forth.

"I was," I muttered, hanging my head low in shame.

"Then why did he lose his job?" He inquired, blaming me for Patrick losing his position as a professor. I remained silent, not knowing what to say. "Huh? Or better question yet, why did he tell me it was all your fault?"

Tears blurred my vision.

"Well?

"How can it be all my fault?" I yelled, failing to keep my composure and turning around to face him, "I didn't even like him at first!"

"At first!" He repeated, "At first! Then what happened? Huh?" I just stared at him, my heart pounding against my chest and the room starting to grow warm. "Evie, it was cute that you had a crush on him and all, but it's gone too far now. I didn't recommend him to you so you could sleep with him. I recommended him to you so you could learn how to play piano and save your relationship with Tyler."

"I thought you didn't want me to get back together with him!" I cried, "And if I recall correctly, you told me he wasn't worth it. That he didn't deserve the second chance I wanted to give him. That I should find someone who really cares about me."

"I didn't mean that someone should be Patrick, though!"

I shook my head and pushed past him, snatching my apron on my way out. I tied it around my waist as Joe, once again, followed after me.

"Evie, wait. I just..."

"You just what, Joe?" I ripped the carafe out of the machine and went to fill it.

He just stared at me, failing to find the words to explain himself.

"It's not my fault he lost his job," I went on to say, angrily shutting the water off and going back over to the coffeemaker, "He was the one who came on to me first. He was the one who came to my house and asked me out for drinks. He was the one who kissed me. I didn't do anything. In fact, I remember trying to get away from him, but he wouldn't let me go. He always brought me right back in. So it's not my fault that he lost his job. It's his."

Joe heaved a sigh, "Well it's not like he-"

"I mean, don't get me wrong," I interrupted him, not finished with what I had to say, "I feel bad for him, but...he shouldn't be blaming this on me. At least for all of it. Because I'll admit, this is partly my fault. But it's not all my fault."

"Evie-"

"You know, he's always blaming everyone else for stuff that happens to him. Like Elisa leaving him. It wasn't her fault. He was never home and, let's not forget, he's a bad person! No wonder she left him!"

"Ev-"

"I don't even know why I fell for him!" I vented, my filter gone, "One minute he's treating me like I don't know what two plus two is and the next he's lying in bed with me, comforting me and keeping me company for the night. He's got to be bipolar or something, I swear!"

"EVIE!"

"What?" I snapped my head in his direction.

"Slow down," He said, taking a few steps towards me, "I just think you should talk to him. Sort things out. Because he was starting to really like this gig and he was finally getting used to the idea of the band not coming back."