Hell's Reign (Patrick Stump/Fall Out Boy Fanfiction)

Chapter 20 - Slipping into Darkness

                  

The first night in the apartment went by without a hitch. Andy had made a delicious meal that kept everyone full and happy until morning, and the rest of the boys had really outdone themselves cleaning the place up. They found that the shower was still running, and there was a bottle of shampoo left in there, half full, and it was more than enough for everyone to shower. As a result, Patrick had spent half the night finger-combing through Tori's hair for her, since there wasn't a brush or comb in sight. He enjoyed it far too much, but Tori let him play with her hair for as long as he liked, until they both decided that it was time to get some sleep.

            The next morning, Tori woke to an empty bed. It seemed unnaturally quiet in the apartment, especially since Patrick had left the bedroom door ajar. Blinking the sleep from her eyes, Tori slowly climbed out of bed, and wandered out into the living room. It was just as empty as the bedroom, as was the kitchen, so she nervously slipped her shoes on and ventured down towards the theater. The old wooden stairs creaked underfoot as she tiptoed down them, but she noticed with relief that the stage lights were on. She walked through the backstage area quickly, until familiar voices reached her ears.

            "I can't believe we're doing this," Joe's over-tired, nasally voice said. "It's too damn early for this."

            "Shut up, man, this was our dream!" Pete replied, "I'm not letting the fucking apocalypse stop that."

            Tori finally made it to the edge of the curtains, peeking out from behind them to see the boys with all of their equipment strewn about the stage. Patrick was in the middle of adjusting the height of his microphone stand, a beat-up, old red Gretch guitar thrown over his shoulder. Andy was setting up a drum kit, and Joe was hooking up amps. Pete was standing back toward the front of the stage, dictating what needed to be done.

            "We don't have an audience, Pete," Joe continued to argue, "Some dream this is."

            "Use your fucking imagination," Pete grumbled, finally spotting Tori and breaking into a huge grin. "There! Tori can be our audience!"

            "Your what?" Tori asked, still half-asleep and confused as to why they were setting up for a show. She wandered slowly toward Patrick, who abandoned what he was doing to wrap an arm around her waist. He kissed her forehead softly, then went back to his microphone stand.

            "Audience," Pete repeated, gesturing grandly to the open pit. "We're gonna perform on this stage like we were supposed to."

            "It was supposed to be our first real gig," Patrick clarified quietly, "Pete's still bitter about it."

            Tori cracked a small smile, shrugging her shoulders. "I'd love to see you guys perform," she said, "Let me get something to eat, and I'll be right back down."

            "There's a bowl of cereal on the table for you," Andy called out, smiling at her as Tori giggled at his protective nature. She kissed Patrick's cheek quickly, and then made off for the apartment again. She quickly found her cereal, ate it, and then walked into the bathroom to look over herself in a mirror.

            She was still in a white tank top and Patrick's boxers, and her hair was more wavy than frizzy for once. She actually thought she looked half decent, despite the dark circles under her eyes, until she looked back at the hickey on her neck. It reminded her of the way Mike had touched her, the way his lips felt on her neck, but she closed her eyes and willed herself to think of something else. She ended up thinking about Patrick instead; The way he touched her, the way his lips felt. When she opened her eyes again she was blushing.