The Music Or The Misery (FOB FanFic)

Chapter 17

-Patrick's POV-

Alex pulled the van into the garage underneath the Sears Tower. It was empty, not a car in sight. However, it wasn't completely empty. There was a homeless person camped in the far corner of the lot, a fire burning in a trash can and a unfolded box underneath and on top of her as she slept as comfortably as she could. The woman looked familiar, but I couldn't exactly remember where I'd seen him before. I frowned, feeling bad for her.

The car was shut off and we all got out, Alex proceeding to guide us over to the elevator that was going to take us to the hundredth floor. He pressed the button and we waited.

"So what are we going to do now?" Andy inquired.

The former singer of All Time Low glanced over at our drummer and replied, "Well after tonight, you guys can't stay hidden for much longer. But that doesn't mean you can't be anonymous. We're doing another show." The corner of his lips curled up.

"Are you sure another show's a good option, right after we just vandalized the whole city?" I questioned, trying to make it seem like I was still on board with this plan. I hadn't told Andy and Joe about Mara and her plan yet, I was planning to once Alex left.

He sighed, "Look, we can't stop just because of one bad first show. I get it, it's hard, realizing you're the reason that...that people died. But you can't let it stop you. We need to keep doing this, or else we're never going to take down this ban."

Just as he finished his explanation, the elevator doors slid open and we all stepped in. But just before I joined my friends, the homeless person stirred awake and looked over at me, meeting my gaze. It was Ellen Degeneres.

"Holy smokes," I muttered under my breath, guilt and remorse washing over me.

She sat up, a sad look in her icy blue eyes. "Patrick?" She croaked, her voice bouncing off of the cold stone walls dimly illuminated by multiple cheap light fixtures.

"Come on!" Joe exclaimed, grabbing my shirt and yanking me into the elevator. The doors glided shut behind me and I hung my head, tears threatening to fall from my eyes.

"What's wrong, Patrick?" Andy asked as the elevator quickly ascended up the shaft. I shook my head, not giving him an answer.

We reached the floor we'd been staying on these past few weeks. The three of us exited the elevator and Alex bid us farewell, informing us he'd see us tomorrow morning. He waved goodbye and I waited for the doors to close before stopping Joe and Andy who were on their way to their rooms. The two of them spun around to face me.

"Change of plans, guys," I said, pulling out my gun.

"Whoa, Patrick, whoa. Put the gun down, please," Andy pled, putting his hands up in surrender as Joe's eyes doubled in size.

"No, I'm not going to shoot you," I reassured them, "We're going to shoot the president."

"Are you out of your goddamn mind?" Joe yelled at me, "We can't shoot the president!"

"But that was the plan all along, guys. To kill the president. Mara said so."

"Since when did you talk to Mara?" Andy questioned.

"Look, I don't know how to really explain it, but she's been behind all of this. Well, sort of, there's someone else. I don't know who, but there's someone else she mentioned. And the ultimate goal of this mission was to kill the president. Long story short, Mara can't wait any longer and she wants us to kill the president. She'll be with us every step of the way, so we won't be doing it alone."

"Patrick, we're not going to kill the president!" Andy objected.

"Well it's now or never, Andy, so we might as well get it over with now."

"You know what?" Joe retorted, attracting both of our attention, "I'm in."

"Joe!"

"Andy, that guy made it so that I couldn't see my friends. He made it so that I had to play music underground. He made it so that I had to choose my wife over music. Plus, I think out of the three of us, I'd be the one to actually pull the trigger. So I'm in."

"Well I don't care. Because we're not killing the president," Andy stood by his morals, "End of discussion."

Joe shook his head and looked over at me, "Do I get a gun too?"

"It's in your room."

"Sweet!" He turned around and disappeared in his room.

"I didn't sign up for this, Patrick," Andy remarked, crossing his arms over his chest.

"None of us did," I reminded him, "But apparently only two of us are strong enough to actually put an end to this madness. Because I don't know about you, but I don't like living like this, and neither does Joe. So it's up to you whether you're with us or not, Andy. I'm not going to tell you what to do."

*****

"I really wish Andy came with us," Joe sighed as we sat in the back of a car Mara had arranged for us. She told us about it in the note she'd placed underneath Joe's gun. She left Andy one too, but he never saw it since he left the building shortly after me asking him if he was in or not. He obviously chose the latter.

The car picked us up around three. I didn't know who was driving, since there was an opaque divider separating the front from the back seat, or when we'd arrive at our destination. All I knew was that we'd been driving for about four hours and we were currently in Ohio.

"Me too," I murmured, averting my gaze out the window, "But let's be real here, he didn't want to do this much after that one show."

He sighed, "I know."

There was a long pause in our conversation before he asked, "So, did Mara tell you the game plan or did she just give you a gun and tell you to kill The Man?" The corner of his lips curled up into a smirk.

"She didn't really tell me anything other than that she wanted me to do this."

"And you agreed?"

"Yeah."

"Why?"

"Because I love her."

He laughed, "So let me get this straight, you're killing the president...for a girl?"

I heaved a sigh and glanced over at him, "She's not just a girl, Joe, she's...she's the one."

Joe chuckled, "Oh my god, Patrick. You're crazy. You're absolutely, one hundred percent, crazy."

"Hey, I'm just as crazy as you are. You're willing to kill the president too."

"Because I hate him and everything he's put me through. Not because of a girl."

"But what about Marie?" His face fell at the mention of her name. "Aren't you doing this partly because you want to be with her again?"

"It...It's different."

"Not really."

He crossed his arms over his chest and shook his head, "Whatever, Patrick. I don't want to talk about it anymore."

I shook my head and returned my gaze outside.

The car was completely silent for the next fifteen minutes, before the car pulled over to the side of the road.

Joe sat forward, "Why are we stopping?"

"I-I don't know," I answered before the car was turned off. I swallowed hard, a knot forming in the pit of my stomach.

Just then, a little panel in the separation vanished and a face appeared on the other side. My eyes grew wide.

"Nice to see you again, fellas," The person greeted, the corner of their lips curling up into a sly grin.