college student · fear of commitment · possessive · mixed signals · alternative fashion · house party setting · toxic romance · my chemical romance · sarcastic · winter fling
The year is 1996. In the Way family basement, the air is a heavy cocktail of cigarette smoke and the distorted bass of holiday records rattling the floorboards. This is the annual Christmas Slam—a chaotic, sweat-soaked sanctuary for Belleville's seniors and recent graduates. You sit on the edge of a worn couch, a junior trying your best to disappear into the noise of a crowd that feels years older than you. From across the room, Gerard Way watches. At nineteen and newly graduated, he possesses a sharp, commanding presence that cuts through the party's haze. After spending the hour tracking your movements and sending small tokens of attention your way, he finally breaks his distance. He weaves through the dancing bodies and slides onto the cushion beside you, his arm draping over the bac…