The Tattoo // Joshler AU

Chapter Twenty Five

Tyler's POV

I'd passed out. Passed out in the middle of that stupid cafe, and what does she do? Go out and get wasted. Of course. I mean, she did take me home first, but even so. Not like I really mattered to her in the end. She never really seemed to put me first. Well, never consistently.

There would be weeks, months even, where she'd treat me like a prince and look after me and everything seemed wonderful. The thing is, she'd turn so quickly, turn into someone that was spiteful and cruel; she was barely even the same person.

The ever-so-familiar sights and sounds of our flat greeted my senses as I opened my eyes and at least attempted to make sense of what had happened. Our worn-out couch supported my body, and our duvet from the bed covered my body, protecting me, as if her presence was all around. That's not to say that I was fine with her not being there, it would have been nice to have woken up to her beautiful face and gentle voice, would have been nice to not be so alone for once.

That was it, really. I felt alone.

Jenna was out who knows where doing who knows what, I'd barely spoken to Debby or anyone since Josh and I had our argument. Josh, oh God. I'd texted him. I honestly had. And called, and e-mailed, and asked Debby, and essentially done everything I could just to try and get him to talk to me.

Nothing had worked. I'd even been tempted to go to his work to force him to sit down and have an actual conversation with me, but I chickened out of that one. I'm not that brave.

My sock-clad feet swung off the sofa and onto the cold floor, dragging behind me ever so slightly. I didn't even know what time of day it was. It could have been the early hours of the morning for all I knew. In the end, it was about seven hours after I'd had my little incident. Jenna wouldn't be back for a while if she was out, and I was at a loss for what to do.

Who could I even speak to? Most of my friends wouldn't want to speak to me, not after how terribly I treated Josh. I wouldn't want to speak to myself after what I did. Nonetheless, I was bored and needed entertainment, so who could I call?

"Gerard? It's me...Tyler. Yeah, um, do you and Frank, you know, want to come over? I've had a bit of a rough day, and you guys seem to be good at cheering people up. We can order pizza and stuff, you know, if you guys want?" My voice wavered a little at the end, mostly at the thought of them laughing in my face at my offer. It's not like we even knew each other that well.

"Sure thing, we'll be over soon. Want us to bring anything? We've got some wine and good chocolate if you like? Wow, don't I sound mature right now?" His laugh punctuated his sentence, and a small pang of jealousy swept through me and struck a chord that resonated deeply within my mind. How I envied his simple happiness, the pleasure he took in something as trivial as sounding mature.

Mature for me was sweeping up the mess my incoherent girlfriend made every time I got home, mature was not complaining about how, every single time she went out, she came back bitter and snarky. I, evidently, was not destined for a life of simple pleasures.

Built-up tension over something as simple as that dissipated into the air as I sank back down into the cushioned depths of my furniture. Quickly as I had sat down, I realised that I was still in my barista's uniform, and that I was not in any fit state to be greeting guests, no matter how informal the occasion may be.

I mean, I may like to be comfortable, but being presentable was also a standard I set for myself from time to time. A quick sweep of the hair and a throw on of a button-up shirt later, I was vaguely more prepared to greet the couple. No sooner had I set the table and lit my favorite scented candle than the pair arrived, wine and chocolate in hand, as promised.

"Tyler!" Frank exclaimed as I opened up the door for the two. I smiled forcibly, my heart aching a bit as I noticed the couple's intertwined hands. Was it wrong to crave that? Was it wrong to be desperate for something as sweet and inconsequential as adorable nicknames and hand-holding? I'd never actually had that, at least, not with Jenna, that is.

It had never really been that cutesy or sweet, it was more needy and attention craving, and certainly not innocent in the way that Gerard and Frank were.

~~~

"Thanks for such a good night, man!" Honestly, I felt slightly guilty looking at the sincerity on Frank's face, considering I'd been such a crap host the whole night, barely even paying attention to the two of them. Too late now.

"I am so sorry about him, Tyler, he doesn't even realize that he's embarrassing himself in the slightest." Gerard received a playful slap for that little quip, and the two of them were on their way.

And I was left alone again.

I loaded the last of the plates into the dishwasher and turned my eyes to my phone, laying neglected on the kitchen counter for the duration of the evening. The screen lit up, and my hand flew to it, as if I was waiting for someone. And perhaps I was. Not that I would admit it, though.

In any case, my wishes went unanswered. It wasn't even from anyone I knew, just a stupid promotional text from some company wanting me to buy their probably useless product. After a few moments, the light faded back to a dark screen, and I caught a glimpse of my face in the dark glass.

A darkened circle decorated around my left eye, morbidly highlighting the contrast of it compared to my excessively pale skin. It was from two nights ago. Neither of my guests said anything about it.

They didn't have to.