we light up the sky [system of a down fanfiction]

vertigo

8 p.m., the day of the disappearance - System of a Down Residence - Los Angeles.

"WHERE THE FUCK IS HE?!" Daron yelled while pacing back and forth the room. John looked up from his tablet and although he was trying to mask the worry in his face, he was failing miserably. Shavo was nowhere to be found as well, but neither of the boys were worried about him at this particular moment.

"Daron would you please calm the fuck down, and stop moving around. You're giving me a headache."

"Oh well, what the fuck do you expect me to do, huh? I can't just sit here reading porn like some of us. please." Daron was truly disgusted. Why was it only him fretting about Serj? Was he not the band's sweetheart? Shavo's lack of interest was understandable; even at present time he's probably passed out in the back of the pub somewhere in the filthy lower-Californian neighbourhoods. That's just how Shavo was, everyone knew it and no one expected more of him, at times like these. What Daron could not understand was how John could remain so calm, while Serj had gone AWOL for almost 4 hours. He could really need some support right now.

"Hey it's not porn..." John started but quickly dropped the subject because discussing the ethics of fanfiction with an angry Daron would probably not be the best idea at this very specific moment.

"Daron please stop. I'm sure that wherever Serj is, he's fine. And mark my words, he's gonna show up in our doorstep tomorrow morning, with his dopey-I-just-got-laid face, telling us all about this chick he banged all night long." John finished with a smirk. He was hoping this line of thought would help Daron channel his anxiety in a better way.

"No man, this ain't Shavo. This is Serj we're talking about; he's never not answered his phone for 4 hours straight. He hates this shit. You know, he nags me for hours on end whenever I don't pick up my phone. He wouldn't do that to us..." He wouldn't do that to me, his mind finished sadly. It was crystal clear that of all the boys in the band Serj's and Daron's relationship was the most special, and precious to the both of them.

"He's fiiine," John stated dramatically. "He's a grown up you know."

"Yeah, well, welcome to the 21st century love, grown ups fuck up too. And when they do, shit hits the fan." Seeing as John did not know how to respond to that, Daron went to pick up his leather jacket.

"Hey, where you going?"

"Out. I can't stand it here anymore." Daron said flatly.

"At least file a missing person's report!" but the door was fiercely shut before John could utter those words. Fucking child, he thought bitterly as he took the Xanax bottle from the bathroom cabinet and quickly swallowed two of them.

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Present time - Serj's residence, Transylvannia

The day had turned out less bleak than Serj had expected, but bleak nevertheless. He'd woken up feeling no better than when he'd closed his eyes and there was this heavy pang on his chest that he just couldn't shake off. He knew what it was, or rather who had caused it, but he refused to acknowledge it. It wasn't particularly her rejection that had hurt him, it was the way she had seen right through him and realized that he was truly, truly alone.

Not knowing what to do, how to spend those blasted minutes that seemed to go on for eternity, Serj decided to visit his old Nana's piano room. Music was the answer to everything. Quickly he sat down, brushed off that tiny layer of dust that had formed on top, and without losing much time his fingers went to touch and hit the keys he had missed for so long. One after the other, the music notes went flying by, making Serj feel lost in their beauty. A si, then a fa, then a do, the music seemed to flow through his veins, circling the room almost like magic. That kind of bliss did not last though, for something inside Serj had snapped and now his hands were playing faster. The sounds emerging became stronger, more desperate, while his fingers hit the keys faster and faster, as if his soul depended on that piano.