Lady of Sorrows? I Think Not! (New Version)

“Excuse me?” Gerard asked over the buzz of conversation that filled the café. The person on the other side of the counter repeated his order louder. Gerard smiled his thanks and turned to fill the man’s order. As he turned, his eyes caught on a familiar sight in the mirror on the wall behind the mugs. His friend walked towards the counter through the crowds that clogged the warm space. Gerard’s smile was more genuine as he turned around. He handed the customer his drink and waited as his friend neared. Vic’s hair was quite long but his black beanie kept it out of his face well enough. He had big brown eyes and the cutest smile, the kind of smile that made you smile too. A little shorter than Gerard, Vic still had an awesome body – even Gee would admit that much. Several girls who had noticed Vic eyed him with varying degrees of lust or longing but Vic didn’t notice.

“Hey man.” Vic flashed Gerard his special smile as he reached the counter. Gerard returned it happily.

“Here to keep me from going insane?” Gerard asked teasingly. Vic’s laugh was full and warm.

“Always.” Vic glanced around as if he hadn’t just walked through the place. “It’s quite full tonight.” It was Gerard’s turn to laugh.

“For a Friday? This is slow. Want anything to drink? It’s on the house.” Vic nodded and Gerard turned to get him his coffee, he already knew how his housemate liked it. Vic leaned against the counter, and smiled at one of the college girls who was still fawning over him from across the room.

“Pete got that job he applied for last week. Apparently the interview was a piece of cake.” Vic thanked Gerard as he handed over the coffee. Gerard crossed his arms on the counter-top and leaned against it.

“He’ll want to celebrate for sure.” Their third and final housemate was notorious for his party habits. Vic nodded as he took a long sip from his cup.

“I wasn’t supposed to tell, so act surprised when he tells you later. I wanted to give you a heads up, because you’ll probably be crawling out of bed tomorrow.” Gerard groaned and dropped his head onto his arms.

“He wants to go out tonight? I have work tomorrow!” Vic gave his friend a sympathetic look.

“I know how you feel dude, I have studying to do, but if we don’t go then Pete will be bummed out. Neither of us wants him whining for the next week.”

Gerard nodded his agreement, “True. We should try to enjoy it. Do you know where he wants to yet?”

“He said something about that new club in town. I’m not too sure though.” Vic shrugged and sipped his coffee as Gerard sighed and stood up straight as someone walked over to the counter to order another drink. “We better stack up on the coffee now, or we’ll be crawling out of that club.” Vic laughed at the stressed face Gee pulled, showing his friend how much he was looking forward to their friend’s idea of a fun night. Pete could drink anyone under the table if he chose to. Gerard and Vic spent the next half an hour talking about things more general, like Vic’s test results and Gerard’s Weirdar – Gerard could detect weirdness in people; he had never been wrong before, and the guys liked to joke about the weirdos that came into the cafe every day. Gerard was busy in between with customers and Vic had at least seven different girls approach him in the time before the end of Gerard’s shift at half past eight.

Without delay, Gerard grabbed his stuff, stepped out from behind the counter, and waited for Vic who was saying a heartfelt goodbye to the latest group of girls. Well, they thought it was heartfelt; he was simply letting them down easy. They walked out together, past all the patrons and Gerard’s night-shift co-worker. Neither of them noticed the man at the brightly lit table beside the door, and neither of them saw the way he looked at Gerard. There was an obscene hunger glowing in his eyes as the two friends walked right past.

Vic’s car was right outside so they didn’t have to walk far in the cold that froze the very air. Winter was definitely not the friendliest season even if it was the most beautiful. The heater warmed the car quickly as they drove carefully over the ice-slicked roads with the music turned loud. The got home in no time and found the house blazing light into the front yard. It looked like every light in the house had been turned on. Gerard and Vic share a look. Pete was home for sure!

The front door was open, and music blared from the lounge stereo as they walked in. Pete was sprawled on the couch with a drink in his hand, already a little buzzed. He looked up as his friends walked in and practically jumped to his feet. Gerard waved and grinned. Vic just shook his head and laughed as he closed the front door.

“Hey! Guess what?” Pete was so excited, and Gerard knew it would kill Pete’s mood if he knew that Vic had spilled the beans already.
“Hi! You seem pumped man. What happened?” Gerard walked deeper into the lounge and dumped his bag on the couch. He leaned back against the arm of said couch as Pete answered.

“I got the job! I start next Monday!” His grin was contagious: Gerard couldn’t help but grin back.

“That’s awesome! Well done!” Gerard hugged his friend and stepped back. “So are we gonna celebrate or not?” Pete’s face lit up at the suggestion.

“Damn straight! I was thinking we could all o to the new club downtown? You in?”

“Hell yes.” Gerard fist bumped his friend. “Just let me get changed and we’ll go.” Gerard walked upstairs, stopping when he reached Vic’s door. “Vic, hey, we’re leaving in five minutes. You still coming?” He didn’t have to wait long for a reply.

“Yeah; I’ll be right out.” Gerard smiled and walked across the hallway to his own room, closing the door softly behind him. He pulled off his tie with a relieved sigh and started unbuttoning his work shirt as he walked over to his closet. He changed quickly, not wanting to kill Pete’s mood by taking too long; he pulled on black skinny jeans, an iron maiden tee, his black converse, and the leather jacket that his younger brother Mikey had bought him. Gerard stepped into the hall and closed his door at the same time that Vic walked out of his. They smiled at each other and walked downstairs together. Pete was amped; he had already finished another drink by the time they got to the lounge. Gerard grabbed his keys, knowing already that he would be the designated driver, and they all headed to the garage.

As the car pulled out of the driveway, the man stepped out into the sidewalk, under the streetlamp. You still couldn’t quite see his features. He stretched his shoulders slowly, the muscles almost creaking with tension, flexing as if unused in ages. He watched as the car turned the corner, and started towards the now cold, dark and empty house. His heart raced as he touched the door handle. He could feel the elixir that ran through his veins heating to a boil as his fingers caressed the door handle. He had touched that, not long ago. His skin, and now… now he could be close to him! The locked door swung open slowly at the slightest pressure from his probing fingers. This was no obstacle to him. This dark house felt like a church, both holy and profane. Every piece of furniture was another shrine to the object of his obsession. He took a deep, slow breath as he wandered through the house that might as well have been made of gold for the way he saw it. He smiled slowly, the cuts on his lips pulling apart, oozing thick, dark blood down his chin. His sure, steady steps took him through the house, up the gently creaking stairs, and straight across the hall to Gerard’s room. Pushing the door open, he laughed aloud with joy! He threw himself onto the cosy, unkempt bed and buried himself into the covers. They smelled of him! He slowly, dreamily, lost track of the time that flew by, as he slowly drowned in the onslaught of his emotions. This is what Heaven had felt like!

Notes

uhm creep. Eew. I certainly hope you wash that bedding, Gerard, because this feels so nasty.
Any who, feel free to comment, subscribe, or vote. I do love me some feedback!

Rock 'n Roll, my pretty Pansies!