After The Dance (FOB FanFic ft. Panic! At The Disco)

~PART ONE~ [Chapter 4] Pack Up And Leave

Despite what Lexy promised, I didn't see her at school the next day. None of us did. It felt different without her around, I mean, the guys got my mind off of her, but it still felt weird.

On my way home, I decided to detour to Lexy's house and walk up to the door. I raised my hand and knocked three times. I took a step back and crossed my arms over my front, tapping my foot and thinking of a tune in my head. I was about to burst out singing and dancing when the door cracked open, and in the shadow I could see it was her sister who answered the door. I recomposed myself and cleared my throat, "Hey Catherine, I'm wondering if Lexy can hang out?"

"You really shouldn't be here, Patrick," Catherine retorted as she opened the door fully so I could see her, "Now isn't a good time."

"What do you mean 'now isn't a good time'?"

"Patrick, it's...it's hard to explain. Just don't worry about her. She's fine. I'll tell her you stopped by," And with that, she stepped back and slammed the door in my face. I stared at the door for a little while before turning on my heel and walking over to my house. I told my mom I was home and went directly up to my bedroom. I threw my backpack down on my bed and looked out my window. Directly across from my window was Lexy's bedroom window. She was standing in it, the saddest look on her face I've ever seen.

I walked up to my window and put my hand up to it. She mirrored me, a sad smile on her face. I smiled back. She looked over her shoulder before turning away. She returned shortly after with a notebook in her hands, and behind her ear, a marker. She pulled the marker out from behind her ear and scribbled something down. She capped the marker and pressed the notepad up to her window, message side to me.

I'm sorry I wasn't in school today

I looked over my shoulder and spotted a notebook in the clutter on my desk. I walked over to it, pulled it out, and grabbed a marker out of the makeshift pencil holder (which was really just a cleaned out aluminum can that, if I remember correctly, was a can of corn). I bit the cap and pulled the marker down, writing my response to her. I walked back over to the window, marker cap still between my teeth, and replied to her.

Are you feeling okay?

She lowered the notepad to write something. She pressed it back up against the window.

No

My response: 

Do you want me to bring you over some of my mom's chicken noodle soup?

I watched her laugh, and even though I couldn't hear her, I laughed too.

She wrote down something but stopped halfway, biting the marker as she tried to phrase whatever she had to say. She put the marker back to the paper and finished her response:

Thanks but it's not THAT kind of not okay. 

I raised my eyebrow in confusion before scribbling:

Then what kind of not okay is it?

She looked at me for what seemed like the longest time before simply replying:

I'll call you

I nodded my head in understanding and watched her disappear from her window. The next I know, the home phone in the kitchen began to ring. I set down my notebook and rushed downstairs to pick up the phone before my mom or anyone else could. "Lexy?" I greeted.

"Hey, Patrick," Her voice sounded on the other end of the line.

"What's going on?" I asked.

There was a long pause of silence, and I thought she might've hung up on me, but she finally said something. Something I wish she didn't say. "I'm moving."

"You're what?" I retorted in disbelief.

"My dad's making us move. To New Jersey."

"NEW JERSEY!?!" I screamed, shocked by this news. "Why are you moving to New Jersey?"

"My dad say he feels like he's trapped here, or at least that's what he told Cath and me," Lexy answered, "And there's no convincing him not to move. He's already got a place there and everything. All we have to do is finish packing our things up and go."

"But...but you can't!" By now I had attracted the attention of my mother and my brother, who were now standing in the doorway between the kitchen and the front entryway behind me.

"I'm sorry, Patrick, but there's nothing I can do," Lexy's voice was soft. Barely audible even.

"What's going on?" I heard my brother whisper into my mom's ear.

"I don't know," She whispered in response.

"But you can't leave," I muttered, leaning forward and pressing my forehead against the wall. "What am I going to do without you?"

"I-I don't know, Patrick," She stuttered. I hung my head, closing my eyes and having a tear drop fall to the ground. "I'm sorry, but I've got to go, I'll talk to you later, Patrick."

"No, Lexy, don-" I was cut off by the sound of the ended call. I slammed the phone down on the receiver and covered my face with my hands, trying to hide the tears that had formed in my eyes and dared to stream down my cheeks.

"Patrick?" My mother asked, placing her hand on my shoulder. I jerked away from her hold and rushed upstairs, slamming my door behind me and burying myself under the blankets on my bed. How could he just do something like that?

*****

As I was walking through the halls of the school the next day, alone, I passed by the principal's office and saw Lexy. I retraced my steps and saw her hand over some papers to the receptionist.

"And when is this going to be effective?" The receptionist asked her.

"Well we're leaving Friday night, so...I guess as of next week." She answered, slipping her hands into the pockets of her jeans that looked like they were attacked with a pair of scissors.

"Alright, I'll notify the principal and attendance and your teachers," The receptionist replied with a smile.

"Thank you," Lexy turned around and saw me. She froze up immediately, her eyes wide. "Patrick," She muttered under her breath.

I walked into the office up to her and inquired, "You're leaving Friday?"

"Like I said," She remarked before brushing past me and out into the hall, expecting me to follow her, which I did. The two of us started walking down the hallway together and she continued, "My dad already has a place there. All we need to do is pack up everything and leave."

"But about the party this weekend?" I questioned, not wanting to go without her. Sure, I had Pete, Andy, and Joe, but if we're not performing, Pete's probably going to meet up with Jennifer there, Andy will find some corner to sit in and read his comic book of the week, ignoring everyone, and Joe will either cling by my side the whole time or try to muster up the courage and finally ask Marie out, which I'm praying for option two. That leaves me all alone. And if we do perform, I always perform better when I know Lexy's there. I don't know why, I just do. So if she's not there...

"I can't go, Patrick."

"Come on, Lexy, you're just going to let your dad take you away from here? Where you've lived your entire life? Where all your friends are?"

"I don't have any say in this!" She cried. "It's not like I have enough money to get my own place and be able to live on my own!"

"You can stay with me," I remarked desperately, "Or Pete. Pete has his own place."

"Yeah, I've been there before and it's a shitty little apartment that smells like piss and alcohol and...just...no."

"Come on, Lex, I don't want you to leave."

"I don't want to leave either, but it's going to happen whether you and I like it or not." And with that, she escaped into her first period classroom. I heaved a sigh and turned around, heading for my first period class.