Metronome (FOB FanFic ft. Tyler Joseph)

Chapter 26

I turned around on my doorstep and waved goodbye to Josh, whose car was parked out in the road in front of my house, having just dropped me off from our night out. He flashed me a smile and honked his horn before pulling away from the curb and driving away. I stood there for a little before undoing the locks and pushing the door in, the emptiness that had blanketed over the entire place still unsettling to me.

I stepped through the threshold and was about to close the door behind me when I heard the sound of a car roll up behind me. I slowly glanced back over my shoulder and saw an unfamiliar vehicle sitting in my driveway, the headlights preventing me from identifying the driver.

It wasn't long before the engine was cut and the lights went out, the car door being pushed outward and a person emerging from inside. They walked around the front of their car, stepping out of the darkness and into the light.

An annoyed chuckle slipped past my lips as I muttered under my breath, "You've got to be kidding me."

The redness in his cheeks intensified as he cautiously approached me, his hands in his pockets, "Do you want to know the real reason I didn't leave?"

"No, but I feel like you're going to tell me anyways," I retorted, escaping inside my house and throwing my jacket to the side.

He walked in shortly after me, saying, "Evie, I...I'm not scared of falling for someone again. I'm scared...I'm scared of what's going to happen to me."

I rolled my eyes and walked upstairs, Patrick trailing closely behind me.

"I honestly don't know what I've been doing," He continued to explain, following me into my bedroom and slipping in before I could slam the door in his face. He grabbed me by the shoulder and spun me around so that I was facing him, "I'm lost, okay? Without the band and without Elisa, I...I didn't know what I was supposed to do. If I wasn't the lead singer of a band, and I wasn't supposed her boyfriend...who was I?"

"An inconsiderate, heartless, doesn't-care-about-anyone-but-himself dickhead?" I guessed.

His eyes narrowed, "No."

"Really? Because I'm pretty sure that sums you up quite well."

Patrick heaved an exasperated sigh and tilted his head down, "Look, Evie, what I'm trying to say here is...I'm not afraid of falling for someone again. I'm afraid of becoming someone I've never been before. All I've ever known is being in a band or being with her. Being a professor and being with you...okay, the possibility of being with you...it's like uncharted territory for me. And that's why I'm so scared."

I stared at him blankly.

"I honestly didn't care that someone snitched on us," He confessed, clasping his hands behind his back and swaying back and forth on the balls of his feet, "In fact, I was kind of grateful. I mean, at the time, I was really pissed but...that's just because I thought I finally found something to put my heart into that wasn't the band. But let's be real, here," He chuckled nervously, "I'm not meant to be a professor. I never was and I never will be. I can't teach for shit and all my students hate me."

I folded my arms over my chest, waiting for him to get to his point.

"I usually try not to care what people think of me, or how they view me, but...there's this one student that hates me that's really gotten to me. And I want to try to change that."

I broke in a smile of disbelief and let out a slight chuckle, "Patrick, don't try to do things you can't achieve. Trust me, it doesn't end well. So why don't just be lucky you haven't been punched in the face yet. Okay? Because I'm this close to doing it myself," I held my hand out and pinched my thumb and index finger together, "This close."

"And you have every right to feel that way, but please," He stuck his hands out in front of him, pleading, "You've got to hear me out."

"Hear you out?" I repeated angrily with a scoff, "Patrick, that's all I've been doing...hearing you out. And you just keep telling me the same thing over and over and over again, I swear. And you know what? Your words don't mean shit to me. They really don't. Because each time I've heard you out, and I tried responding, you've shut me down. And if we're being honest here, I liked it better when you didn't care about me. It was so much simpler back then. So much simpler. But now you do and...and it's just this back and forth 'where do we stand?' kind of situation. And I'm sorry, but I'm just so tired of doing that. I mean, you're worse than Tyler was!"

He shook his head and turned it to the side, averting his gaze away from mine.

"I'm serious, Patrick!" I snapped.

"And you don't think I am?" He replied distractedly, his voice low.

"No!" I exclaimed, laughing, "No I don't!"

"Let me prove it to you, then," He muttered with utmost seriousness, returning his attention to me.

"How?"