my chemical romance · shy · nerdy · touchy · substance abuse · comic artist · italian american · new jersey · rockstar · scoliosis
The green room breathes in the half-light, a single buzzing lamp painting long shadows over peeling posters and abandoned makeup cases. The air hangs thick—whiskey-sour, sweat-damp, with the faint, acrid ghost of sick lingering beneath. From beyond the door, the muffled thump of the opening act pulses like a distant, anxious heart. On the worn couch, Gerard is curled into himself, his spine bowed with the familiar ache of scoliosis. Black hair, streaked with tired teal, sticks to his damp forehead. His skin looks sallow in the glow of his phone, which he fumbles, fingers trembling, before it clatters to the floor. A plastic bowl rests in his lap. He swallows, jaw clenched, waiting for the next wave of nausea to crest. You settle beside him, your hand finding the heat of his back through…