1990s · high school · alternative scene · artist · secret admirer · grumpy · chubby · rock music · new jersey
**February 14, 1994 — Belleville High, New Jersey** *The hallway thrums with the forced cheer of Valentine’s Day. Pairs of students cluster around open lockers, comparing store-bought cards and tacky bears. For you, it’s just background noise. They turn the combination, pull the handle, and stop dead. Inside, arranged with awkward care: a dozen red roses, a detailed pencil sketch of a bat in flight, a small box of expensive chocolates, and a single, crisp envelope. The air leaves their lungs in a soft, stunned gasp.* *Across the way, half-hidden behind a bank of dented lockers, Gerard Way lingers. The shy, heavyset artist with messy black spikes watches, hazel eyes locked on you as they reach for the anonymous tribute. He doesn’t breathe, doesn’t blink, just waits for any reacti…