The lights in the stadium dimmed, and before my brain had a chance to process what was happening, they were on stage. I think my heart might have stopped a little bit when I saw Gerard's familiar face up there in the lights. He was so close to me, and yet, he had never been so far away.H ere, I couldn't reach out and touch him, I couldn't smell him. Here, he belonged to everyone.

We had waited for the show to start with Alicia and Christa, who worked very hard to ensure that the guys didn't see us beforehand. We had gone for a walk in Central Park, then out to dinner in a sweet little dive of a cafe. I was in a daze for most of the day, both excited and afraid at the same time. The same thought kept running through my head: What if he didn't want me anymore? What would I do then?

Tonight I would see him, and tonight I would know. I almost didn't want to see him, I was so afraid that what we had died on that island. But then, just seeing him there on the stage, being so near him, put my fears at rest, at least momentarily. All I felt was a huge lump in my throat, and a desire so strong I nearly forgot who I was.

The pressure of Charlotte's hand on mine brought me back to reality, slightly, just as the lights were coming back up. I looked at her in amazement.

"It's over?" I asked, astonished. Charlotte laughed.

"Um, yeah? They played for, like, two hours !Isn't that enough?" she laughed.

"Sorry, I guess I'm a little out of it," I replied, looking around the slowly emptying venue. "Where's Tori?"

"Up front, with Alicia and Christa. They should be heading back this way." I nodded at Charlotte's words, and continued to survey my surroundings. It was a lot dirtier and much uglier now that the lights were on.Charlotte squeezed my hand. "Hey, it's ok! You look like your brand new puppy just died!"

"I guess I'm just a little freaked," I said. "No, I take that back. I'm a lot freaked." Charlotte laughed, and patted my hand.

"Why? It's not like you've never met them," she said. I sighed, and looked around me again. I could now see Tori, Christa, and Alicia heading towards us.

"I know," I whined. "But what if-"

"Oh. My. GOD!" Charlotte cried in exasperation, cutting me off.

"Seriously, Bubbles, what if-" I started again.

"AHPH!" Charlotte cried, holding up her hand to stop me. "No more! No more, Koko! No more time, come on!" She grabbed my hand, and pulled me forward, towards the other girls. "We gotta go back now," she told them as we approached. "Angel's getting all whiny, and it's starting to piss me off. Let's get her backstage quick, so she can be Gerard's problem." The girls laughed.

"Ah, young love!" Alicia said, smirking.

"No," Charlotte said, "young neurosis is more like it."

"Oh God, not the 'what if's' again!" Tori cried, shaking her head. "You're right, Char, let's get her back there now."

"The 'what if's'?" Christa asked, sounding amused.

"Guys, come on," I said, slightly irritated. "What if-"

"AHPH!" Charlotte cut me off again. "We've heard your concerns, and have told you that they are baseless.No more!" She grabbed my hand, and gave me a sympathetic smile. "Let's go, and do this quick. Come on, Koko, like ripping off a band-aid. Lead the way, Alicia!" Alicia grabbed my other hand, and the two of them began pulling me towards the backstage door. I felt like I had just run a marathon, my heart was beating so fast. We flashed our passes to the guards, who greeted Alicia and Christa cheerfully, and then began to make our way through the throngs of people in the maze of corridors behind the stage.

Soon, we were in a large room filled with people. We stopped in the doorway, and I quickly scanned the room. A caterer's table was set up in one corner, and people milled around the room as though it were a reception of some kind. Then I started to notice them. Ray was helping himself to what looked like spaghetti from the caterer's table, Bob was sitting in one corner, talking politely to a group of teenagers, Frank was hurrying towards us, with a huge smile on his face.

And there, standing beside Mikey, talking to the tall blonde woman I recognized as his mother, was my Gerard. His back was to me, but even from this distance, I could tell it was him. My heart dropped, like I was on a roller coaster or something, and I just wanted to wrap my arms around him and never let go.

Frank was wrapped around Charlotte now, practically squeezing the life out of her, a huge, shit eating grin on his face. After a few moments, they released each other.

"I'll be right back, just give me one minute," he said to her, before turning to face me. "You ready to do this Angel?" he asked, grinning like mad. I gulped, and nodded, and Frank smirked at me. "Don't be scared, Koko, he's gonna be beyond thrilled to see you, trust me." He wrapped his arm around my shoulder, and pulled me forward, closer to Gerard and Mikey. I just happened to see Ray look up from his spaghetti. His jaw dropped, and I think he either gasped or choked, I couldn’t tell which. From behind me, Christa veered off from our little pack, moving over to see if he was ok. "Hey Gerard!" Frank yelled. Gerard didn't turn around, he merely raised his hand to Frank over his shoulder, as if to say one minute. "Gerard!I've got something for you!" Frank tried again.

"One minute, Frank!" Gerard yelled back, sounding slightly exasperated.

"Seriously Gerard! I had to work my fucking ass off to get you this particular present!" Frank yelled again. Gerard still didn't turn, but Mikey did. His eyes got wide, and his jaw dropped, and for a moment, he looked too stunned to do anything. I smiled at him, and slowly, his mouth formed into a smile as well. He began to tug on Gerard's arm. This is when I think Charlotte got bored with it all, cause she moved over to the caterer's table, and then turned towards me with an excited look on her face.

"Look, Koko, they have bananas!" she yelled. This must have gotten Gerard's attention, much more effectively than Frank's yelling or Mikey's tugging, because, as though in slow motion, he turned to face us. Frank tightened his grip on my shoulder, as though he knew I was a wreck inside, and he beamed at Gerard. He looked pale, well, even paler than normal, and thin, far too thin, but my God, did he look good. His jaw dropped as he stared at me, and he gasped.

"Angel?" he whispered, and he sounded a bit like a lost little boy. I nodded, and quickly wiped away the tear that was forming in my eye. Frank let his arm drop from around my shoulders, and I moved forward like a sleepwalker. Gerard continued to stand there for a moment, his mouth gaping open, and then, in one movement, he had rushed through the space between us, and I was enveloped in his arms.

Notes

As commanded, here is the next chapter.

And thank you guys for your kind words. I really do appreciate it.