Bad Dreams //mgc

80.

*Michael's POV*

I can tell she's nervous about the English project today. She's really frazzled this morning.

"Angel, stop a minute," I said, holding her wrist to look at me. "Take a deep breath. Your PowerPoint is mindblowingly good. Everyone is going to love it. I know you're worried about the way they will see you afterwards, but everyone has their secrets. You're the one that's strong enough to face them. Maybe this will help encourage others to face theirs as well. Wouldn't that be awesome?"

Thankfully, that worked. The tension in her shoulders eases and she smiles her perfect smile. "That would be amazing." I kiss her on the lips and she finishes collecting her things and heads out the door.

"You'll be there, right?" she asks.

"Absolutely!" She turns and leaves.

A few minutes later, I get a text from Calum.

To Mikey
She left yet?

To Cal
Just did. Y?

To Mikey
Be there in a few. I'll explain.

A few minutes later, he knocks on the door. "Come in" I call to him as he walk in the front door. "So what's up?"

"Good, she left her laptop."

"What are you up to Cal?"

A smile spreads across his face and he explains. "Luke and Ashton wanted to find a way to show Cara that she's more than just your girlfriend. I know all this tour and fan stuff has been getting to her. She talks to Regan about it a lot. She's become a sister to all of us and we want to show her how much she means to us.

After she showed us the PowerPoint, they had an idea. We want to send that to John, and to Modest, along with a few other pictures she took from our gig. Maybe they'll let her come on tour with us as our official photographer. At least until the fall semester starts."

Oh my god, why didn't I think about that?! "I fucking love you Cal!!!" and I embrace him in a hug. I open her laptop asking "Should we put it on a flash drive or send it straight from here?"

"Flash drive," he says handing me one. "That way there's no way she'll know what we're doing. If she knows and it doesn't work, it'll crush her." It would. He's absolutely right. It would make her feel like a third wheel and that defeats the purpose. I nod and transfer the PowerPoint to the drive, then scroll through concert photos and pick out the best ones, saving them to the drive as well, then handing him the drive.

"Now I need your help," I tell him. "What the fuck do I wear?" He looks at me really confused. "She's presenting this today and got permission for me to be there with her. The twitter shit is messing with her head more than she's letting on and is really nervous. So, what the hell do I wear?" He laughs at me. I know I sound like a girl right now, I just want to do this right for her. I put on my black skinny jeans without holes, and my gray Harley Davidson sleeveless shirt. There, not out of character, and not grungy.

I grab her laptop, just in case she decides she needs it after all and head off to AIW.

I get there early, so I just stand outside the door and wait. I'm fidgeting while the class before hers let's out. She should be here soon.

After everyone leaves, the professor sees me and stands at the door. "You're Cara's boyfriend, right?" she asks.

"Yes ma'am"

"Is it as bad as she says?" I know she's talking about the hate and all the pictures on Twitter. "Worse than she even knows," I answer. I've been creeping on fan accounts and I've seen death threats made against her. I don't think they're serious yet, but I'm definitely watching them, and I let Modest know, too.

She nods and goes back into the classroom. "Mikey!" Ahhh my angel is here! I smile and pull her in for a kiss as students start to arrive and go into the classroom.

We start into the classroom as her professor tells Cara, "You can set up now Cara. You can present first and then head home right after, if you want."

"Okay, thanks Miss Williams!" she says. This is good. She likes to just get it over with. I help her set up while Miss Williams addresses the class with the plan for the day.

"You want me up here with you?" I whisper to her. She is really tense. She nods and smiles. "Thanks Mikey." Miss Williams gives her the floor and all attention is on her. She starts.

"I chose our first assignment, which was to describe who you are and where you are in life. It started out as a poem about overcoming your past, fighting your demons and finding something to live for. With the help of someone special," she glanced at me, "four special people actually, we turned it into so much more than a simple poem. So, here is Jet Black Heart." She pressed start as the video came up on the screen. The sound of Ashton's drums begins and the words "Jet Black Heart" appear. "By, Cara Davidson and 5 Seconds of Summer" She stands to the side, grabbing my hand as she shifts her attention between the screen, the class, Miss Williams and myself.

Everybody's got their demons
Even wide awake or dreaming
I'm the one who ends up leaving
Make it okay

Wow, this looks amazing on a big screen like this. Much better than just on our TV!

See a war I wanna fight it
See a match I wanna strike it
Every fire I've ignited
Faded to gray

But now that I'm broken
Now that you know it
Caught up in a moment
Can you see inside?

Cause I've got a jet black heart
And there's a hurricane underneath it
Trying to keep us apart
I write with a poison pen
But these chemicals moving between us
Are the reason to start again.

She squeezes my hand really tight during the chorus as it flips through the pictures of her personal hurricane. I discreetly move behind her and wrap my arms around her when it gets to "trying to keep us apart" the fans are trying, but I won't let that happen. I noticed her glancing directly at TJ from time to time, at parts that seem to refer to him. He keeps looking back and forth between the screen and us.

Now I'm holding on for dear life
There's no way that we could rewind
Maybe there's nothing after midnight
That could make you stay

But now that I'm broken
Now that you know it
Caught up in a moment
Can you see inside?

Cause I've got a jet black heart
And there's a hurricane underneath it
Trying to keep us apart
I write with a poison pen
But these chemicals moving between us
Are the reason to start again.

The blood in my veins
Is made up of mistakes
Let's forget who we are
And dive into the dark
As we burst into color
Returning to life

She tried to keep a straight face, but she could not fight the huge smile that showed up on her face during those last two lines as she looked at me. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw TJ slump down in his seat. This is great!

Cause I've got a jet black heart
And there's a hurricane underneath it
Trying to keep us apart
I write with a poison pen
But these chemicals moving between us
Are the reason to start again.

The blood in my veins
Is made up of mistakes
(To start again)
Let's forget who we are
And dive into the dark