Icy Blues (Gerard Way Teacher)

Chapter Thirty: Early Sunsets

That beeping sound is like nails on a chalkboard. It's all I can hear. Aside from the muffled sound of various voices. I know where I am. Sort of. I know I'm in a hospital, but which one I have no clue. All hospitals look and sound the same. White walls with blue beds. White curtains and white floors. They're all the same.

I'm in a room. Not one of those beds shielded by curtains. I have windows and a bathroom. The sun is setting. Or rising. I woke up only a few minutes ago, so I'm not sure which it is. My vision is still slightly blurry, so reading the clock on the wall isn't an option.

God, my throat is dry. There's a red button beside my bed, and I haven't decided if I want to press it for a nurse or just wait for them to check on me. I can't remember anything after the female officer tried to calm me down. But I remember enough. I remember seeing Daniel's lifeless body half buried in the show and Jade... No matter how much I try to block it out, the sight of her blown open head keeps clouding my mind. Haunting me like a bad dream.

"Miss Rockwell?" A soft female voice echos in the empty hospital room. My eyes drift over from the sunset to look at her. "I'm glad to see that you're awake." She smiles warmly. I try to smile back, but it probably looks lopsided. There's an IV in my hand, and I'm willing to bet it's morphine or some other type of pain killer because my body feels numb. I can see all the cuts and bruises, but I can't feel them. "How are you feeling?" She asks me while approaching the edge of the bed. Grabbing a clipboard that hangs by the bed post, she looks at me expectantly. "Good. I'm a bit thirsty, though." The nurse nods her head and turns to leave the room. "There are some gentlemen here to see you. Would you like me to send them in?" I simply nod my head, and she walks out of the room.

I shift my attention back to the windows. The sun is barely visible now over the trees. It's a sunset. Not a sunrise. I've been out for at least a day. Gerard's house was surrounded by trees, and seeing the sunset was never an option. God, I forgot how beautiful it is. How peaceful it is.

A knock echos through the room, bringing my attention back to reality. The door creaks open, and two men step inside. I swallow hard, barely able to contain my emotions as I look up at them. Tears brim my eyes, and a wobbly smile forms on my face. A small sob escapses my lips as Mikey and Frank rush over, and both engulfing me in a bone crushing hug. Tears escape my eyes while they hold me. Their touch is so warm and comforting. I open my mouth to speak, but all that I manage is a dry sob. Frank runs his hand through my matted hair. "Shh." He shushes me while Mikey rubs my back in comforting circles.

"I never thought I'd see you guys again." I choke out while sniffling. They squeeze me harder, making me very thankful for the painkillers they're giving me. The nurse comes back holding a bottle of water, which she places on the table beside me. "When you feel ready, there's a police officer outside who would like to ask you a few questions." I smile and thank her as she leaves the room.

It takes a while, but I finally calm down enough to speak normally. "How long have I been here?" I look down at Frank, who sits on the end of the hospital bed, running his hand up and down my leg. "We got the call this morning, but it was all over the news two nights ago." He responds. His tone softly but serious. I nod in response. "What about Gerard?" My mouth goes dry when his name leaves my lips. I can feel Frank's body tense, and I can see Mikey's expression harden. "He's in custody right now. There is no chance of parole, and we're awaiting trial." My body relaxes slightly. But his words from that night replay in my mind. Over and over like a broken record. Because he's right. No matter far away he is or how locked down he is, the fear will always be there.

"Are you okay if we bring the officers in? They've been waiting for a while now." Mikey asks while walking over to the door. I simply nod in response, and he opens the door. A man and a woman in full uniform walk in, their presence intimidating but comforting. "Riley Rockwell." I shake his outstretched hand. "I'm officer Blake, and this is officer McCain. If it's okay with you, we'd like to ask you some questions?" I sit up straighter. "Of course." Mikey and Frank sit on either side of the bed while the officers approach. "We understand things are very difficult for you right now. But we're just doing our job." I nod. "I understand, don't worry." The female officer, Officer McCain, pulls out a notepad as Officer Blake starts to speak.

"Can you tell us what happened the day you were abducted?" My mind races back. Remember every second of what happened. "I had gotten a message from Aron. He told me he needed to get over to his place as soon as possible. That he needed me because it was an emergency. He told me to have Frank drop me off, and then he'd take me home. It didn't occur to me that there shouldn't have been a way he'd known I was with Frank." I take a sip of my water before continuing. "When I got there, the house was dark. I sent Frank home and went inside. I tried calling out to Aron. I started to think it was a joke until I went into his bedroom. That's when I found him. I tried to feel for a pulse, but there was so much blood." My stomach begins to churn, and I feel bile rising in my throat.

Mikey watches my face turn pale and is quick to place a steel pan in front of me just in time for me to throw up. The only thing in my stomach was water, so that's all that came back out. I dry heave a few times before my stomach calms down. Enough for me to relax. "Maybe you guys should come back later." Frank starts to say while placing a comforting hand on my back. "No." My voice is raspy. "I just want to get it over with." After a few deep breaths and sips of water, I continue.

"While I was trying to find Aron's pulse, Gerard came up behind me. Told me there was no use that Aron had been dead for hours. I screamed at him, called him a sick fuck. He said that he did it for us. I called him a murderer. That Aron was an innocent man. Then he got angry." I pause for a moment. Taking another sip of water for my dry throat. "He said Aron was trying to take me away from him. And now that he's gone, we can be together. He grabbed me, and I pulled away. I told him he needed serious help and that I didn't love him. That I never would. He told me he should kill me for what I did. He grabbed me, so I kicked him in the groin and kneed him in the face. I tried to run. But I didn't get far. He pushed me down the stairs. Once I hit the bottom he came down after me. Kicking me and punching me." I grimace at the memory.

"He then screamed at me again. Telling me that he should kill me, but that he can't because he loves me. He said a life without me isn't one worth living." Those words are etched in my mind. "As he was about to drag me away. Raelyn opened the door. I asked her what she was doing. I told her what he did! But she just smiled at me and went up the stairs. Gerard dragged me outside and forced me into his car, I was so sore and so weak. He brought me to his house where I was forced into his basement. It's under his stairs. A hidden room. He would keep me there during the day and make me sleep in his room at night. Every second I spent out of that room had to be with him. Every fucking second." I start to raise my voice. Remembering everything I don't feel fear anymore. I just feel anger.

"Okay, I think that's enough questioning for now. Riley needs to rest." The nurse comes back in the room as the machine starts to beep faster. The officers look from her to me. "Thank you for your time, Riley." Officer Blake says to me before they both walk out. I run a hand through my messy hair and let out a frustrated sigh. "I'm sorry." I say quietly to no one in particular. "Why? There is nothing that you did that you have to apologize for, Riley." Frank scoots up and now is sitting next to me. "When is the trial?" I look up at Mikey. I can't imagine how he's feeling. Gerard is his brother. I don't doubt he's feeling the same way I did towards Raelyn. "January 15th. They want to televise it." Mikey responds. I can see he's trying to be strong, but his eyes tell me all I need to know.

"We understand if you wouldn't want that. What happened was very traumatic and -" "Let's do it." I cut Frank off, and he looks at me surprised. "Are you sure? You have time to think about it." I look at Frank. My expression is stern. "I want the world to know what kind of sick fuck he is. I want to have justice for Aron, Jade, and Daniel. They were innocent and didn't deserve what he did." Tears brim my eyes when I think about them. I look away from them. My eyes focus on the now dark windows as the sun fully sets. "The world will know about what he did. That's what they'd want, and it's the only form of justice I can give them."