“You seem a little off tonight, Frankie,” Mikey pointed out as the band sat around their dressing room. Frank looked up from his hands and shrugged, the deer in headlights look written across his face. Mikey leaned back into the cushions of the couch that had been provided for them and crossed his legs, bouncing his foot a few times.

“You sure you’re okay?”

“I’m fine, man,” Frank nodded, blowing his hair from his face and looking toward the closed door.

Tilting his head to the side, Mikey watched his band mate curiously. There was definitely something bothering him. He was more antsy than usual and he was definitely distracted. Before he could question Frank further, Gerard waltzed into the room with a water bottle in hand and a girl on his arm.

“Hey guys,” he beamed. “This is Lindsey. You remember her.”

The group gave a collective nod and Mikey waved at the fellow bassist before returning his curious eyes on Frank who looked thunderstruck. He stared as Gerard and Lindsey crossed the room and sank onto another of the four couches and leaned toward each other in hushed conversation. Mikey’s brow furrowed as Lindsey laughed and the smile on his brother’s face widened a little more. He looked like he’d just fallen head over heels in love.

“Fuck,” Frank muttered, drawing Mikey’s eyes away from his brother.

“What?”

“Nothing,” Frank shook his head and sprawled out on his couch. He absently began tapping his fingers against the cushion; the fast beat quickening every time Gerard or Lindsey laughed.

Finally fed up with the tapping, Mikey jumped to his feet and crossed the room, grabbing Frank by the front of his shirt and yanking him into the hall amongst confused curses. When the door slammed closed behind them the younger Way rounded on him with a hard stare.

“What’s going on with you? You’re acting odd.”

Frank chewed his lip and shrugged, not meeting Mikey’s gaze. “I told you, it’s nothing. I’m just jittery, that’s all. I think I drank too much Coke before we went on and it’s still not worn off yet.”

He shrugged his shoulders to stress his point but Mikey didn’t buy it. “Frank, you’re lying.”

“How do you know?” he scratched the back of his neck and shoved his hand in his pocket, pulling out a pack of cigarettes. Mikey waited for him to light up before pressing the matter.

“You’re not looking me in the eye.”

“So?”

“Frank!”

His eyes finally met with Mikey’s and he sighed, a tangle of smoke filling the space between them. “Remember last week when you guys had that fight with Dom. You told her not to call you or anything?”

Butterflies erupted in Mikey’s stomach at the mention of her name. He’d been doing so well not thinking or worrying about her. His chest tightened at the possibilities of Frank bringing their week old argument back to the surface and none of them were good. Keeping his lips pursed, Mikey shifted his weight and nodded, waiting for Frank to continue.

“Well, I’ve been keeping in touch with Nat and by default, Dom…” he hedged and Mikey rolled his eyes.

“Okay?”

Another sigh and a face full of smoke and Frank caved, “That night Dom used and ended up in the hospital. She didn’t want me to tell you or Gee but she’s teetering. Nat called me yesterday and said Dom’s borderline manic-depressive. She had half a mind to commit her to an institution. Nat’s afraid she’s gonna hurt herself.”

Mikey felt his heart skip a few beats. And he was just finding this out now? His jaw tightened and he swallowed, trying to process the situation before letting his temper get the better of him. He wasn’t one to get angry but Dom leaving him in the dark after something like this made his blood boil.

“Why didn’t anyone tell me?”

“She was afraid to.”

“Why?”

“That’s something you’ll have to ask her.” Frank shrugged, scratching at his elbow and flicking ash to the ground.

“No, you know what, this is just a cry for attention. She’s doing this to herself purely as a ploy to snare us again. I’m not doing it. I can’t.”

“Right, that’s why she keeps trying to kill herself, Mike. To get you back in her vice grips. That’s complete bullshit, dude, and you know it. The girl is seriously messed up. The least you could do is try and help her.”

“I can’t.” he shook his head. “Not after what she did with Gee. I can’t handle that again. It’s hard enough forgiving him.”

Frank groaned and tilted his head back to stare at the ceiling. He blew the smoke from his cigarette toward the light before tossing the butt and stomping it out. After bending forward to pick up the crushed butt Frank straightened and patted Mikey’s shoulder with a closed-lipped smile.

“You have your own shit to work out, I get that. But she needs you to be her friend, Mike. We’re obviously not good enough to keep her afloat. She needs her best friend to keep her sane. To her, when that’s gone, she’s got nothing. You never really loved her anyway. You loved the expectation. It’s time you realized that because she needs you in her life, man.”

He gave his shoulder one last reassuring squeeze before disappearing back into the dressing room. The echo of Lindsey’s laughter filled the hall for a second before the door closed, returning it to silence. Leaning against the brick, Mikey frowned. No matter how hard he tried to deny it, Frank was right. He never really loved Dominica. He loved the idea of her. He saw her broken side, but not the broken, half crazed insecure little girl she tried her damndest not to let him see. He loved the slightly damaged but still upbeat Dom. The Dom that used occasionally but promised she was weaning herself off.

He barely understood the reeling, emotional, scared Dom. He was terrified of her. Realizing how deep she was in her pill addiction and her insecurities scared the shit out of him. But Frank was right, no matter how terrified he was, she was still his best friend. She knew him better than he knew himself sometimes. And he needed to get to know her. The real her.

Pulling out his phone he lit the screen, ignoring the blaring numbers telling him it was almost three AM. He dialed Dom’s number and crossed his fingers only to be disappointed when it carried through to voicemail. Instead of leaving a message he disconnected, making a mental note to call her in the morning. Stuffing the phone back in his pocket, Mikey pushed away from the wall and faced the door. He wrapped a hand around the knob and sighed. Now he needed to decide whether he wanted to tell Gerard or not. A decision he really didn’t want to make.

“…so, I pretty much almost lost my pants that night,” Gerard laughed, Lindsey’s laughter joining his when Mikey stepped back into the dressing room. His brother looked up from the conversation and waved him over with an enthusiastic grin. “Mikey, come sit. You look like you’ve just seen a ghost. What happened?”

Fuck. He sank onto the couch beside his brother and shrugged, trying his hardest to come off as nonchalant. He knew he probably came off more as awkward than cool but he was going for anything other than wildly concerned at that point.

“Nothing, I’m fine,” he lied and Gee frowned.

“You remember Lindsey, right? We met a few years ago… She plays bass too…”

“Yeah,” Mikey nodded, forcing a polite smile and turning to the pretty brunette. She beamed and held her arms open, pulling him into a warm hug. Her red lips pressed to his cheek and he rubbed the spot as he pulled away. “How are you, it’s been a while.”

“Yeah, I was in town so I figured I’d stop in… Enjoy a great show provided by old friends. You know,” she shrugged innocently, her eyes returning to his brother who didn’t seem to notice.

Mikey nodded and forced an awkward chuckle, “Well, I’m glad you had a good time. “

“I did! Thank you.”

“Listen if I don’t see you later, it was great seeing you. I actually have to step out…” Mikey stood and let his voice trail off. He made his way across the room to where Ray sat at his computer, his headphones over his ears and his usually frizzy hair slightly tamed as he surfed the web.

“Ray,” he reached out to tug a headphone off when the lead guitarist jumped and pulled it off himself.

“Don’t do that, man!” he swatted at him. “What’s up?”

Mikey smirked before clearing his throat to get serious. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and shrugged. “I was wondering if I could talk to you… you know… in private,” he indicated the door and Ray nodded.

“Yeah, sure.”

“Great.”

The two made their way back into the hall. Mikey could feel Frank’s eyes on him as the door closed but he ignored it, instead focusing his attention on Ray.

“What’s going on?” Was the first thing the lead guitarist asked, settling his headphones around his neck.

Mikey sighed and scratched the back of his neck. He knew Ray wouldn’t tolerate the hedging so he looked his friend right in the eyes and let it spill. “It’s Dom. Frank just told me she was in the hospital after our fight. I don’t know if I should tell Gerard.”

Crossing his arms over his chest, Ray nodded, his expression drawn in concern. He pulled the headphones from around his neck, playing with the cord before nodding again, this time his eyes determined.

“Let Gee do his own thing. He needs to move on and so does Dom. Worry about the tour and yourself. All three of you need some air. If you have to contact her, be gentle, okay. You guys don’t seem to know how to talk to her and it just sets her insecurities off. Don’t call her unless you know you can be the best friend she wants, Mikey. But not until then.”

The younger Way nodded, bowing his head. He fingered the cell phone in his pocket but didn’t pull it out. He was genuinely concerned for her health, but he knew he wouldn’t say the right things. He was pissed that she hid her hospital stay from him and he knew he’d say something if it came up. No, he needed to breath before calling her. Nodding, he forced a smile at Ray before opening the door to rejoin the rest of the band. Ray slapped an encouraging hand on his shoulder, squeezing it as the entered the dressing room.

Lindsey had left so Gee had resumed listening to his iPod, his voice rising and falling as he half sung half hummed to the music. Taking the seat beside his brother, Mikey slouched back in the cushions; his eyes finding Frank as he strummed his guitar and flipped open a notebook, jotting something down. He let his eyes close for a second and sighed. He knew he had to let the situation breathe but he also wanted to make sure his best friend was okay. Making up his mind he pursed his lips and opened his eyes. He’s worry about the rest of the tour and then think about Dominica. It was the only way he’d stay sane.