Hazy Shades of Winter (A Rayrard story)

1

Gerard made his way into the small cafe, inhaling deeply and sighing in content of the aroma that surrounded him. This was his favourite place to be at a time when he felt lonely and in need of inspiration. He unzipped his jacket, shrugging it off and setting it down in a nearby booth, revealing pale arms adorned in different paint colours, as well as his black t-shirt. He made his way up to the counter, smiling at the familiar faces of the two brothers. "Hey, Gerard," The taller one spoke up, his curly fro pulled back in a ponytail to keep it from getting in the way. "Hey Ray," The raven haired male replied softly, brushing a few strands of his hair back. "You want your usual?" The smaller one asked, looking over from the coffee machine. He looked worn out, but he still wore a smile. "Yes, please." Gerard nodded.

"Looks like you got into another fight with a toddler with finger paint," Ray chuckled, noticing the different colours on Gerard's arms and shirt. "Inspiration hit you again, huh?" Gerard laughed softly and nodded, "Yeah, stayed up almost all night trying to finish it. I think it turned out pretty good. I could bring it by sometime, the walls look a bit empty." Ray nodded, "That'd be great! Nate over here isn't one for interior design." His brother froze and turned to him, glaring. "I told you, I'm working on the mural. Even Gee over here can't finish a wall sized canvas in two weeks." He huffed, then resumed making the ravenette's as Ray laughed. "Yeah, yeah."

Gerard laughed again and pulled out his wallet, going to pull out his card when Ray stopped him. "I'll pay." The older male looked up at him, furrowing his brows, "Are you sure..? I can pay-" Ray shook his head with a smile, "It's on the house today." Nate handed over Gerard's drink, "Enjoy, honey." Gerard took the coffee gratefully, "Thank you so much.." 

"No problem," Ray nodded, looking to his brother, who was fixing another drink. "Well, I should get going, heh.. Thanks again." Gerard smiled and went to grab his jacket. "Wait, did you walk here?" The curly haired male asked, cocking his head. "Um.. Yeah," Gerard picked up his jacket, not looking over as he replied. "In this weather? I can give you a ride if you need-"

"I'll be fine, Ray," Gerard looked over and smiled as he pulled his jacket on, "I get my inspiration while walking anyways." Ray nodded, "Okay then... Hey, be safe out there, okay?" "I will, don't worry. So long, guys." Gerard walked out, coffee in hand. He was immediately hit with the harsh coldness, but his face was still warm. He didn't realize that he was blushing, and if he did, he would wonder why. 

Was it the fact that Ray cared for him so much? No, that couldn't be it. He was caring to everyone, he wasn't anything to him. Just an acquaintance, a customer of the cafe. He started walking back home, coffee in one hand, the other in his pocket. He wished he had driven here, it was snowing again and it was hellishly cold. The snowflakes in his hair stood out against the dark strands, making them seem like stars against a black void before melting and leaving the man more cold. He made his way back home, heading inside and grabbing his sketchbook. He felt inspired again.

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It was five minutes until closing time. Ray was wiping down the counter and tables as his brother was cleaning the coffee machines. "So... What was that about earlier?" The smaller one asked, looking over to his brother. Ray cocked his head, "What do you mean?" Nate rolled his eyes, "The playful banter? Offering Gerard a ride home?"

"Oh, well... He's a nice guy, and he deserves to be treated kindly ever since Mikey... Y'know." Ray replied softly, causing Nate to tense. He and Mikey were close before the accident happened, and the painful memories of what had happened still haunted him today. "I... Yeah, you're right," The younger one replied quietly, his hands starting to tremble as his mind was flooded with the images of the younger Way's death. 

Ray took notice and rushed over to his brother, "Hey, hey..." He pulled him into a tight hug. "I'm sorry for bringing it up, okay..? C'mon, deep breaths.." The smaller male took in a deep breath, sighing out, "It's fine, Ray, I'm fine..."

There were the five of them, having a good time and drinking.

Ray, Nate, Frank, Gerard, and Mikey.. They were all having a small party on the bank of the Hudson, which was a good 2 hour drive from the small town of Belleville. There was really no safe place to party in their town, riddled with violent crimes almost every day. They did not want to fall victim to one of these crimes, so they decided to take their party to the river. There weren't any people in that area that night, so they decided that they would be safe.

Were they wrong?

While they were drinking and blasting music, Mikey had disappeared somewhere, the other four not really noticing until the early hours in the morning. Nate had gone into a frenzy when he couldn't find his best friend, so they went on a search for him, walking the bank and the woods.

What they found changed their lives for the worse. 

Mikey's death was terrible, sure, but it just had to be his best friend and brother who found him face down in the water, unalive and pale. Nate had pulled him out of the water and tried to resuscitate him, but to no avail. That day was full of tears and regret, and the funeral was the same way.

Nate never forgot, neither did Gerard.

Frank moved away after that, taken over by guilt and grief. He thought it was best that he parted from them all. Gerard became more reclusive after that, taken over by drugs and alcohol. It wasn't until he was laying in a hospital bed, recovering from an overdose that he realized that Mikey wouldn't have wanted this for him. He would've wanted him to move on and live his life. So he got his shit together, and got better. He went to therapy, didn't abuse his medication, and picked back up on his art.

Though the man rarely left his home, except to go to the cafe, he was happy with being isolated. He embraced it, though he missed hanging out with friends. He missed Frank and Mikey.. He missed Ray and Nate, though he saw them damn near daily.

The male was currently painting, mind swimming. He should see if Ray wanted to hang out tomorrow... He picked up his phone and dialed Ray's number, taking in a breath. Ray pulled away from his brother and picked up his phone, "Hey." 

"Hey, Ray.. I was wondering if maybe... You'd want to hang out tomorrow?" Gerard asked, knawing on his lip. He knew that Ray had the day off, having memorized Ray schedule. That wasn't creepy, right? 

Ray blinked, "Uh, sure! I'm off tomorrow anyways, I could stop by for a bit."

Gerard smiled wide, feeling giddy and setting his paintbrush down, wanting to squeal like a high-school girl with a crush. "Okay! Just let me know when you'd wanna come by."

"Does 1 sound good?"

"Yeah! That's great, see you then!"