The Adventure (Tomark)

Chapter 6

A/N: Thanks so much for your comments on the last chapter! They were a big motivation. I'm sorry that there's yet another cliffhanger; I just love dramatic endings :D! That last scene will be finished next time though. BTW, you should listen to Band of Horses' "The Funeral" when reading this! Really suits the mood of it. 

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Mark, before finally entering the venue again, turns around and looks at Tom with a suspicious smile on his face.

„Well, maybe it's because you're my type?"

Tom freezes. The teenager is not entirely sure whether this was one of Mark's stupid jokes or an actual confession. He also is uncertain as to why this matters to him at all; but yes, it does somehow and this feels weird, yet good. Tom decides that he immediately has to find out what exactly Mark was trying to say.

„Whoa, wait," he thus protests, but when he enters the venue again, his friend has already disappeared in the crowd. Since spotting him among a bunch of wild, drunk and mosh-friendly punk rock fans neither seems promising nor very safe, Tom changes his mind and goes back to his original plan: the bar. The waiting line is huge, but the student doesn't mind; he actually enjoys watching the other guests. For the first time, Tom doesn't feel misplaced or lost. Sure, he actually only got in because Mark knows the bouncer and at least one of Mark friends hates him, too, but that doesn't matter anymore. Tom is a real part of this — he bawled punk songs at the top of his voice, danced with a pretty blonde chick, downed loads of beer and well, he is Mark's type (maybe). Not that it matters, though.

After finishing the drink he got at the bar and socializing with the people he met in the process, the high schooler heads for the bathroom. He is feeling dizzy by now, however, cold water should do the trick. He splashes his face with the cool liquid, rubs his eyes afterwards and almost gets a heart attack when he recognizes Patrick's face in the mirror. He appears to be highly intoxicated by now and Tom backs off just in case.

„Aww, lost your guardian?" the older boy wants to know and calmly starts washing his hands.

„Um, like I said, I can look after myself," Tom replies, annoyed. He is drunk enough to start a fight, but tries to pull himself together. This night has been nice so far and while beating the shit out of that narcissistic asshole seems like a very 'punk' thing to do right now, Tom actually prefers to avoid such conflicts. He is both too chicken-hearted and too pacifistic (except for that one time he hit his older brother with a skateboard, but that had been Shon's fault anyway). Besides, he's mature enough to condone Patrick's constant verbal attacks. Until now at least.

„Oh yeah? So you're a big boy already? A tough guy?" Patrick scoffs, pushing the other boy lightly. While the gesture is not violent at all, it does have sort of an aggressive undertone to it. Tom, both lips pressed together, retreats again. Patrick seems livid and he doesn't want to provoke him any further. At the same time, he doesn't want to give in either. Being drunk helped with tolerating this nonsense at first, however, it makes putting up with Patrick kind of hard by now.

„Yo, DeLonge! Did you forget how to speak? Or are you just trying to piss me off on purpose?" the older boy continues, moving closer again. „Wait, I know what's going on. You're a fucking pussy, aren't you? Now that Mark ain't here to hold your hand?"

That's it. Tom can feel rage growing inside him, he can't bear this idiot anymore. „Mark's not my babysitter, alright? He's my friend."

„Oh yeah? You think you're one of us now? Shit, let me tell you something," Patrick hisses threateningly, his eyes focused on Tom. „This is not gonna last. It never does. I have no idea why that moron is all over you lately, but I don't even give a fuck because it's only a matter of time until he ditches you, anyway."