Mixtape For The End of the World

20. Pete and Gabe meet at a vegan restaurant.

20. Pete and Gabe meet at a vegan restaurant.

I ran into Patrick again the next day. I had just finished off a long shift at Fall Out Bros. Pizza, and I was ready to go home, but as I entered the parking lot, I spotted a bespectacled boy in a fedora, and I knew exactly who it was. "Hey Lunchbox!" I shouted.

"Pete, that one doesn't even make sense," Patrick said. He laughed and walked right up to me with a huge grin spread across his face. "It's good to see you again. I couldn't stop thinking about last night during work today."

"Me neither," I said.

"I wish that I could have stayed longer," Patrick said. "It was so wonderful to be with you. I'd trade all my tomorrows for just one yesterday, you know."

"You don't need to," I said. "Patrick, I don't have the right name or the right looks, but I have twice the heart, and it's all for you."

"You're so sweet," Patrick said. "Why aren't there more guys in the world like you?"

"When they made me, they broke the mold," I said. I paused for a moment, and then said, "Patrick, I'd like to ask you something."

"What is it?" Patrick asked.

"Would you like to go out with me sometime?" I asked.

Patrick smiled and then said, "I was wondering when you'd ask. I'd love to, Pete."

"When would you like to go?" I asked.

"I would say tonight, but I'm working this evening," Patrick said. "Tomorrow night should be fine though."

"Tomorrow night works for me too," I said. Gabe and Brendon had talked about going to the Sunshine Riptide that night - it would be nice to have an excuse not to go. Besides, I wanted nothing more than to go on a date with the boy that I was falling in love with. "How about this? I'll pick you up at five, and we can have dinner and see a movie."

"That sounds amazing, Pete," Patrick said. "I'll see you then."

I got into my car and drove home, but as I did, I thought of Patrick. I still couldn't believe that he had agreed to go on a date with me, but was it so unbelievable after he had told me that he liked me the night before? A lot of seemingly impossible things had happened this week, and this was only the tip of the iceberg. Of course, I wasn't complaining. These last few days had been incredible. For once, I could take my mind off of Gabe's visions and focus on my own life. Between my soccer team winning all of its games, Billie Joe giving me free pizza, and best of all, Patrick going out with me, my life was going surprisingly well for once.

Only one thing was for sure: I couldn't wait until my date with Patrick.

The next day went by far too slowly for my taste. I went back and forth between soccer practice, working at Fall Out Bros., and telling anyone who would listen about my upcoming date with Patrick. Unfortunately, my siblings didn't want to hear about the boy that I was going out with, and neither did my soccer teammates. Joe at least listened to what I had to say about Patrick, but it was clear that he didn't care all that much.

I called Brendon, but Ryan picked up. "Brendon's at play practice," he said.

"That's okay. I just wanted to say that I love Patrick Stump," I told Ryan.

"Nobody cares, Pete," Ryan said.

"Oh come on, you're just bitter because of Brendon, aren't you?" I said, but I realized that Ryan had hung up.

I tried calling Gabe, but he didn't pick up - I wasn't sure where he was, but he clearly wasn't home. I didn't bother to leave a message. Instead, I grabbed my Walkman, put my headphones on, and tried to distract myself. It didn't work very well - I had a mixtape for studying, a mixtape for sleeping, a mixtape for going to the gym, a mixtape for eating leftover pizza for breakfast, and two mixtapes for crying on the couch, but I didn't have a mixtape for falling in love.