Homewrecker With A Heart Of Gold (Patrick Stump FanFic ft. Zack Merrick)

Chapter 14

-Zack's POV-

My days at home flew by and before I knew it, it was time for me to finish the tour. Luckily there were only about two more weeks of the tour before I'd be back home again, but that didn't make me feel any better about leaving my family behind. I'd said my goodbyes to Chase the night before, knowing I would be gone by the time he woke up the next morning. As for Gwen, I saved my goodbyes for the morning.

The sun hadn't even peeked over the horizon yet while I packed my bags, Gwen sitting on the bed behind me and catching my clean clothes as I tossed them to her to put them in my duffel bag. I turned around once there were no more clothes left in the laundry basket and watched as she zipped the bag up, letting out a yawn before meeting my gaze and flashing me a weak grin.

I walked up to her and sat down in front of her, asking, "Will you be okay for another week or two?"

She nodded her head, though her response was questionable on its credibility. Ever since that night I went out with Patrick, something changed in Gwen. I wasn't exactly sure what it was, but she didn't seem like herself. It was like she was drawing farther away from me, Chase too.

I brought my hand up and tucked a piece of her blonde hair behind her ear. "I love you, Gwen."

"I love you too," She replied, her voice quiet and almost inaudible. For the first time in a while, it felt as though those four words held meaning; that she wasn't just saying them because it was expected of her.

I leaned forward and connected my lips with hers. She kissed me back, and just like the simple phrase, there was actually something behind it. She didn't just do it because she was supposed to. I pulled away and stared into her eyes, trying to decipher where this change had come from.

She giggled. "What?"

"Are you feeling okay?" I asked her.

"Of course I am," She lied, "Why wouldn't I be?"

"You're acting weird."

My wife sat there in silence for a brief moment before asking, "Can I tell you something, Zack?"

"Of course," I replied, grabbing her hand in mine and interlocking her fingers with mine, "What is it?"

Gwen gazed down at our intertwined hands and let out a long breath. "I know it's not my place to tell you what you should do with your life, but...after this tour's done with...I want things to change." She slowly glanced up at me and continued, "I want you home more often. I want you to be there for me, for Chase. Like his first day of school. Or his tenth birthday. I don't want to have to celebrate those alone, you know? I want you to celebrate them with me."

I stared at her blankly. Was she asking me to do what I think she was asking me to do?

"You don't have to make a decision now, but I want you think about it. And if you decide that that's not what you want to do...then so be it. But I don't think I can do this anymore, this...this being alone all the time. I thought I was okay with it, but with each year that passes, the more I realize that I'm not."

"Gwen..."

"Zack, I don't like the person I've become," She confessed as she slipped her hands out of mine and turned away from me, swinging her legs over the edge of the bed and standing up, "I don't want to be the girl who's married and has a kid but is seeing someone else. I just want to be with you..." Her voice trailed off and she walked over to our dresser, opening her jewelry box and pulling out the necklace I'd given her for once our anniversaries.

"What about Patrick?" I asked her.

"Patrick told me we were done," She disclosed, her voice low and her gaze locked on the silver chain with a heart pendant hanging from it.

I remained silent, tilting my head down and twiddling my thumbs in my lap, the corner of my lip curling up into a smirk.

"I didn't know what I was thinking," Gwen went on to say, "All he did was lie to me, telling me we were going to run away together one day...him, Chase, and me...he wanted us to be a family. But obviously he just wanted someone to fuck his sorry pathetic ass after his girlfriend left him." She dropped the necklace back into the jewelry box and slammed the lid shut, anger boiling up inside of her.

The smirk on my face faded away and I slowly lifted my head up, my eyebrows knit together. "You guys were going to run away together? And take Chase with you?"

"I was lonely," was all she said to justify herself.

"If you were lonely, why didn't you tell me?" I asked her, getting up and walking over to her, grabbing her by the shoulder and turning her to face me. "You know I would've dropped what I was doing for you, Gwen. I love you."

"So does that mean you're going to stay home after this tour?" She inquired, her eyes glistening with tears making their way to mine.

I swallowed the lump in my throat, unable to give her a definite answer.

"Okay," My wife retorted, taking a step back from me and folding her arms over her chest, "I see. You know, I get it, Zack. Why you tell me I'm the liar, the one who builds up these big webs of lies. It's because you don't want to admit you're the spider." I scoffed, shaking my head and crossing my arms. That was another thing she was great at doing - turning the tables on you and making it seem like she's the innocent victim. She always did it. "If you don't want to be with me and Chase, then don't be with us, Zack. We'll find our way."

"Did I say that?" I snapped at her. "Did I say I didn't want to be with you guys?"

"You didn't have to say anything, Zack. If you want to be a rock star, go for it. It's what you always wanted to do and I'm not going to hold you back. But I'm not going to stick around for it anymore, and neither is Chase."

My jaw dropped in astonishment. "What? Gwen, you can't do this to me!"

"I'm sorry, Zack, but I'm not happy anymore. And I hate to say it, but it's Chase and me or the band. I just can't do this anymore, I really can't." She brushed past me and picked my duffel bag up from the bed, handing it to me. "Make up your mind by the time you come back, okay?"

"This isn't fair!" I shouted at her, forgetting that the sun hadn't risen yet and Chase was still in bed as I dropped the bag to the ground.

"You're right, it's not fair. I shouldn't be stuck here waiting for you all the time. Do you know how many nights I've spent alone because you're away, busy putting on shows or working on songs with the guys?" I shook my head and averted my gaze over to the clock, checking the time. I was running late. She grabbed my chin and forcefully brought my attention back to her, answering her own question, "Too many nights, Zack. Too many goddamn fucking nights."

I pushed myself away from her. "Don't you get it, Gwen? I hate it just as much as you do! My response when I come home and see you guys is genuine. I miss you guys like hell when I'm away-"

"Then tell me you're going to come home for good after this tour," She muttered, shoving my bag at my chest. I instinctively took it into my possession, my heart pounding against my chest as I stared at the woman I was starting to not recognize standing before me. "Otherwise, don't even bother coming back."