Finding a Way | Adopted by Gerard Way

One With The Gang

Quick A/N: I'm confused with the timeline of my own story here so let's just sort this out... I think it's now Saturday December 9 2006. Yeah. Let's go with that.

Gerard's POV

I thought Evelyn was joking when she first said it. I really couldn't believe she'd actually do that. "Yeah, I skipped school." But she hasn't been in a joking mood lately. What was almost just as unbelievable was the way she stood her ground, her voice wavering only slightly, her hands balled into fists, and she was actually yelling. And she doesn't yell.

Sleep didn't come last night. Part of me was waiting to shoot out of bed toward Eve's room, expecting to comfort her after another nightmare, but that didn't happen. Instead I was left tossing and turning, alone with my thoughts. Which, granted, isn't that uncommon for me, but it was near-crippling worry over my daughter whom I thought was still excelling in school. And the way she was talking down on herself, how she thinks she's alone...

When it finally hits 7AM, I stumble out of my room and go downstairs. I'm half expecting Eve to be downstairs in the kitchen like she's been every other day this week before I take her to school, but then I remember it's Saturday.

I can't wait any longer. I have to go to talk to her— for obvious reasons— and apologize. Because, yes what she did was wrong, and although she yelled at me, so did I. I yelled at her and I know she has a hard time with people raising their voices at her.

So I go back upstairs toward her room, but when I get there and I see her asleep, curled up in her blankets, I can't bring myself to wake her up.

"I can't fucking sleep." Is what she yelled yesterday. Well, she's asleep now.

Evelyn's POV

It worked. I pretended to be asleep and avoided a conversation I was dreading. I stay there, curled up in my blankets for as long as possible. Snow fell last night— the first snow of the season— and it's cold. But when I finally set my feet onto my freezing bedroom floor and look outside, I see that it covers the ground beautifully in a thin, sparkling sheet. The bright white is almost blinding.

I'm surprisingly not grounded after all the shit that went down yesterday. So when I say that I'm going for a walk, Gerard just nods and tells me to be careful. I didn't make eye contact with him once.

All I can focus on is how cold I am as I trek to the small building in the woods for the first time since Tuesday. I have a single goal in mind and it's the only thing that's preventing my lungs from giving out. That is, if I don't pass out from dizziness first. I guess that's what happens when you eat only a couple bites of food in the span of about five days, flushing the rest down the toilet or lying about having had anything at all.

When I finally get to my destination, (it started snowing again when I was half-way there) I don't even knock before barging into The Box. Raven, Krash, and Zero are all in their beanbag chairs just as I'd expected.

"She's back!" Zero exclaims, pointing a finger in my direction.

"Hey, Way! Where've you—"

"Give me a smoke." I cut Raven off, not asking but demanding.

"W-what?"

"I said give me a smoke." I stick my hand out.

"You sure about that?" Krash asks with his eyebrows raised.

"Did I fucking stutter?" And for once, I actually hadn't. I take satisfaction from seeing the shocked look on everyone's faces.

Raven takes a pack of cigarettes from the table, slides one out, and hands it to me reluctantly. I snatch a lighter from that same table and light it. You would've thought I'd done this a hundred times before.