Not So Dangerous Days

3

"And that the...Killjoys have been cleared of all charges. Please treat them as you would your fellow citizens. That is all for now." Boos sounded from the crowd as the speaker stepped down from the pulpit. He sighed when he spotted Gerard and I waiting for him. I had argued with Gerard for a solid hour about whether or not he could leave the hospital, and he had won.

"Mister...Poison. Your old apartment was left untouched, so you may return there. Just don't come crying to the government if your neighbors hate you." Gerard nodded and thanked the man before walking back out to the parking lot. He opened the door and sat in the passenger seat as I opened my door. Mikey poked his head up in to the front seat.

"Hey, are you okay? Your wound looked pretty bad."

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"Then what took you so long?"

"Well, Jet Star, we had to wait for this one guy to finish a public announcement before we could ask him about, y'know, how all of our charges had been cleared."

"And is it true? That we've been cleared?" Gerard nodded and leaned back in his seat. His hand rested on his side where he had been shot. I briefly glanced over, catching a glimpse of pain in his eyes.

"So, how about we get you home?" Jet Star looked up, confused.

"Wait, you actually had a home here?"

"Oh, yeah, I did."

"Well, where is it?" Gerard began to give me directions and soon we pulled into an apartment complex. Gerard opened the car door and practically fell out of the car. He quickly recovered and turned to me. He gestured for me to follow him and I climbed out of the car. Mikey and Jet Star followed the two of us as we entered the building. Gerard talked to the receptionist for a few minutes and finally managed to get his room keys back. He then led us to an elevator and we all piled in. Gerard led us down a hall after exiting the elevator. He unlocked one of the rooms and entered. We all filed in after him and stared at the clean walls and floors, all an off white. Gerard threw his jacket onto the couch and walked back to one of the rooms. He came back in a new shirt that didn't have a hole in it and saw that we were all staring.

"Um, I don't think all four of us can live here, so..."

"Hey, it's okay G...Party Poison. Jet Star and I can find somewhere else." Mikey led a confused Jet Star out of the apartment after giving Gerard a quick hug. I looked over at Gerard, who had began to dig around in one of the cabinets. He closed it and muttered something along the lines of 'untouched my ass' and turned to me.

"Um, there's an empty bedroom if you want it, and the bathroom is the first door on the right when you enter the hall and..."

"Hey, I'll figure it out. You just go get some rest. I think your wound is a lot worse than you let on. Besides, I can take care of myself." He nodded and disappeared down the hall. I followed him and watched him enter a room at the end of the hall and close the door. He opened it again a few minutes later, revealing that he had changed into a pair of sweatpants and an over-sized shirt. He held up his boots and just dropped them in front of his door, muttering a goodnight.