Listen (Patrick Stump / Fall Out Boy Fanfic)

Chapter 18 - Tell Me You're Sorry

            The show was better than ever. It was almost as if we'd never even left. People were still screaming and cheering for us as we left the venue, all of us feeling more alive and enthusiastic about this tour. I ran to Aria immediately, my guitar still hanging over my back, and I hugged her as tightly as I could. She laughed and hugged me back as I spun her around and around, but soon enough, the rest of the band was piling on top of us in a group hug. Pete was whooping it up, Andy was almost in tears, and Joe was laughing his ass off. We were so happy, that we ignored security when they tried to hurry us off to the tour bus.

It was a good half hour before we finally made it outside. Pete and Joe ran for the bus first, screaming out breaking out the beer as soon as they climbed on board. They were followed by a tired looking Andy, who shook his head at them, and finally, Aria and myself. I was holding tightly to her hand, afraid that if I let go, she would be mad at me again. As we climbed onto the bus, we found that Pete and Joe had held true to their plans and were clinking beer bottles together at the breakfast table, loudly recounting tonight's events and laughing together. Andy was lounging on the couch, his phone in his hands, and he barely glanced up at us as we walked by. I declined Pete's offer for a drink and made my way to the bunk room, where our bags were already sitting on the bottom, left-hand bunk.

I finally let go of Aria's hand and she quietly went to sit on the edge of our bunk. I wondered briefly if she would be sharing it with me tonight, or if one of us was going to end up out on the couch. I sighed and took a seat across from her, on the bunk where Joe had tossed his things. I leaned forward, resting my arms on my knees and folding my hands together nervously. Aria stared at a spot on the floor near my feet, wringing her fingers and bouncing one leg up and down anxiously. I waited for her to speak or even just yell at me, but she didn't. She just kept wringing her fingers and bouncing her leg. She was terrified.

I reached out timidly and took her hands in mine, pulling them apart and squeezing them in mine. Aria looked up at me then, holding tightly to me, but with tears in her eyes. I moved closer to the edge of my seat and leaned down to kiss her hands. She didn't stop me, so I kept going, kissing each of her knuckles individually, and then turning one hand over to kiss her palm. When I did that, her other hand moved to the side of my face, making me look up at her. She slid that hand into my hair and grabbed a handful, tugging gently and glaring at me as she did so. She was frustrated; angry with me, but scared enough that she didn't want me to leave.

I gently reached up and pulled her hand from my hair, letting her pull both of her hands from mine so she could speak. "Why didn't you tell me?" She asked, her lips beginning to quiver as her eyes glistened with the tears she refused to shed.

"I'm sorry," was all I could bring myself to sign back, my hands shaking as I stared at Aria's neck, where the little music note shined against her skin.

"You should have told me," She insisted, her hands moving in short, jerking motions, enunciating her anger with her movements instead of her voice. "What if I am...?" She asked, not finishing the sentence, as if avoiding the word might make it less true.

I sighed again and passed a tired hand over my face. I shook my head and shrugged, my hands shaking as I finally answered her. "I don't think the alcohol would affect the baby, if you are. It's too early, I think. But we need to see a doctor as soon as we hit the first city."

She nodded, and we were both motionless for a moment. She stared at the floor again and went back to wringing her hands, while I stared at her face, almost afraid for the moment when those tears would finally fall from her blue eyes. It wasn't long before they did, and the second it happened, my chest tightened and I felt my own eyes beginning to well up. I moved to sit beside her on our bunk, immediately enveloping her in my arms. She cried against my chest, her hands lying limply on my lap, as I ran my fingers through her hair. I held her to me for a few minutes, stroking her hair, and whispering to her that it was all going to be okay even though she couldn't hear me.