Twisted Vines, chapter 1

"Cameron...?" I heard a voice behind me, a voice that seemed strangely familiar for some reason. It gave me a jolt inside and I wondered why I hadn't turned around yet.

I brushed my hair out of my face and stood up straight placing a smile on my face ready to greet this familiar person.

Fuck me oh my.

"Gerard... oh my god... " I said staring at my old best friend.
There he stood, Gerard Way, the man I hadn't seen in five years, his long jet-black hair over his face smothered in dark make up.

A smirk played across his lips "Cameron Sutton-Clarke... what the name of fuck are you doing here?" I put my hand on my hip smirking back just as devilish as he was.

"Well this is a post office... and people do post letters here... and I am posting a letter so... "
"Smartass" he mumbled shuffling quickly to the side to let someone pass him as he was blocking the door.

I practically leaped on him in a hug, stretching my arms tightly around his neck and burying my face in his chest.

"Missed you old buddy" He whispered in my ear.
"Missed you too" I said pulling away from him and grinning.

"How are you?" I asked adjusting my handbag around my arm back up to my shoulder, him watching me carefully.

"OK I guess... " He said shoving the letters he was holding back in his pockets.

"You finished here? I'm taking you out for lunch" I grinned at his frankness and let him grab my hand and lead me out the door of the post office and into the cold and chilly streets of New York.

I was still quite flabbergasted about his arrival in New York when we were sitting in a quiet café waiting for our coffee.
"So... what in god's name are you doing in the big city?" I asked as he looked up at me from the line of sugar he was making on the table.

"You mean what happened to the little guy back in New Jersey who used to draw cartoons?" I watched as his face displayed a mix of emotions, I couldn't really take a pick on what he could have been thinking. I never could.

"I suppose"

"My band... " He said moving in to face me more. I smirked, this was still the Gerard I knew and loved.

"Oh, Gerard, I know all about your little escapades around the world without me... " I said pretending to be annoyed. It didn't work; he just smiled smugly and laughed.

"My Chemical Romance... well, I've missed a bit haven't I?" I said, he laughed even more, his face colouring a little.

"I'm sorry I lost contact Cam" he said reaching over and patting my hand "I fucking lost your number when I came here for that job and you were stuck in New Jersey doing god knows what, I just... lost you" He sighed "I'm so sorry".

I laughed and winked at him "Don't worry, I was pissed for a couple of years when you didn't call, I didn't know your number here so... " He nodded and moved back as our coffees were placed on the table.

"Were opening for Green Day," he said, his eyes sparkling excitedly "their really cool guys"

I giggled; I used to be the biggest Green Day fan in the world. I still liked them now, but I had grown up since then and didn't really listen to music much any more.

"Oh god, I haven't listened to a Green Day in a couple of years... shit, I'm really the worst fan a band could have" He grinned at my comment and flicked his hair out of his eyes, staring down at the floor.

"True right you are... there I was telling Billie Joe Armstrong that my best friend back in Jersey was their biggest fan, and yet you haven't listened to them in two fucking years, I'm disappointed Cam, I really am"

He tried to keep a straight face for a while but couldn't do it and beamed.

"God I missed you" he murmured and sipped his coffee.

I smiled into my drink and put the mug down. We had a lot of catching up to do.

* * *

"I forgot to ask you how Mikey was," I said, four hours later and we were walking up the path to my front door.

"He's great... still less better looking than me... and still trying to work out why, but overall he's great" I giggled, fingering the keys in my hand and staring up at him.

I looked down at his black pants, and black shirt.
"Your wear more black than I remember" He grinned and shoved his hands in his pockets.

"Cam... " I tilted my head, waiting for what I'd been wanting to hear all day.

"Are you gonna tell me the real reason why you didn't call, or just give me more bullshit and run off again"

Gerard's eyes widened and he took a step back, then forward, he repeated that several times before licking his lips and saying; "I never meant to hurt you Cam"

"No, crying for weeks on end just let it all out" I said bitterly, running a hand through my hair and unlocking the door.

"Cam... its just... I... " He stuttered, I waited, wished, hoped, that he'd tell me he still loved me after all these years, if not just to make me feel better.

"Why'd you do that...?" I sighed, watching the look on his face "... go and tell me you loved me and run away, ruin everything we had just because you were scared of rejection"

I watched as his eyes trailed over my body, stopping at my chest then realizing where he was looking and back up to my face, directly into my eyes.

"I never stopped loving you Cameron" He said tugging at his hair in spite of himself, I just leant against the doorframe, my arms crossed, a sort of weakness that always gave way when he was around build up again.

"Here's my number... " I said pulling a pen from my bag and writing it down on his hand "... Don't lose me again."

* * *

Next morning I was sitting in front of the television, watching, sadly enough, the video for 'Helena.'

"Fuck this" I muttered, grabbing the remote and switching the television off.

I hadn't slept all night; mostly because of the shock of Gerard just suddenly rocking up in New York. Or the fact that he just bore his feelings out to me on my doorstep. I couldn't recall a moment in our friendship when he just blurted everything out like that.

Then the memory struck me; he had done something exactly like that before...

* * *

I walked down the street, passing houses that looked all exactly the same, well, to me anyway.

I reached Gerard and Mikey's house, stepping up the brick steps and inaccurately knocked on the door.

I heard the patter of footsteps and somebody's muffled voice. Mikey's face appeared behind the wire door.

"Hey Cam, come on in, lazy fuck's still asleep" I giggled at his comment and ducked under his arm as he let the door open for me.

"Thanks Mikey" I replied, passing through the all too familiar corridor and up to a dark wooden door decorated with drawings of bats and vampires. I knocked once, then twice, and twisted the cold doorknob.

As I stepped into Gerard's pitch-black bedroom I caught the faint smell of cigarette smoke.

"Still asleep my ass" I mumbled walking through the darkness to where I knew Gerard was. I kicked the desk and stepped back, letting Gerard's dark figure ascend from under the desk.

"Oh, fuck Cam, I thought you were Mikey," He said hobbling over to his bed and sitting down, his face now dimly lit by the light red glow from his cigarette.

"Shouldn't he be the brother hiding under the desk chain smoking" I said walking over to where I knew the window was and pulling back the curtains.

"Nooo... " Gerard groaned from behind me "Don't let light in... nooo"

I laughed and turned around, to find him leaning back on his bed, his hair no longer covering his face but sprawled out everywhere, and his ever present cigarette pinched between his lips, which were curled into a smirk.

"You're going to turn into a fucking hermit the way your going," I said dumping down next to him, stealing the cigarette from his mouth and taking a drag from it myself.

"It's better me than you" I said raising my eyebrows at the irritated look on his face.

"What if I already am a hermit?" He began "Will you be a hermit with me?"

I frowned at his openness and shoved him.

"So, what are we doing today?" Gerard asked, positioning himself better so he was actually sitting up straight.

"Well, since we are mature 24 year olds, maybe we should go out and do... lunch or some shit like that"

Gerard winked and stood up, flinging off his shirt and throwing it onto a chair.

"Turn around, I'm changing," He said, putting his hands on his hips and brushing hair out of his face.

I pretended to act shocked "your changing?"

Gerard just laughed and started to unzip his pants.

"OK, OK, I'm turning... " I said, quickly turning my head and staring out the window.

"You look nice today" Gerard said from behind me.

"What?"
"I said you look nice... that ok?"
"I think..."
"Aren't you gonna blush or anything, like normal girls do?"
"No"
"Fine... bitch"

"Hey!" I turned around, forgetting that he was changing and stared directly into his eyes.

"That was so uncalled for" I said, then, noticing what he was wearing turned back to the window abruptly, blushing like mad.

"Sorry" I mumbled, burying my face in the side of the mattress.

"It's ok... I'm not naked any more" Gerard said moments later, poking me in the back.

"Shut up you," I said, pushing him towards the door.



About half an hour later, in sunlight, we were sitting under a tree with coffee.

"Cam?" Gerard said, turning around the trunk of the tree to watch me.

"Yeah?" I said, sipping my coffee thoughtfully and rotating to look at him.

"Have you ever... had feelings for... say... Mikey?" he asked me, his eyes innocently begging for my answer to be a no.

I was shocked for one, but for Gerard to ask this question was just weird.
"No... Never" I replied truthfully "why?"

He shifted uncomfortably and without taking his gaze off me said,
"Because... I was wondering what you thought of... friendship relationships... best ones"

I was quite confused to tell you the truth, the whole best friend relationships... was he talking about us?

"What?"

Gerard sighed and moved closer to me.

"I'm going to New York... for this job I wanna do, but I need to tell you something before I go... " He said, his face looking more ghostly than ever. And for the first time in weeks I realized how tired he looked-this was obviously bringing him down.

"Cameron... I'm... in love with... you"

* * *

I sighed and stood up, carrying my coffee mug into the kitchen and putting it into the sink, promising myself I'd do the washing up later.

As I was just about to go and get dressed the phone began to ring.

"Hello?"

I knew who it was going to be; but I just couldn't think of a good comment to say when I answered the phone.

"Hey, Cameron... it's Gerard"

Well, obviously.

"Hi Gerard" I said, tapping my fingernails on the countertop and staring at the floor.

"Listen, I'm gonna be real bored today till seven when were playing, so, do you wanna do something?" It sounded like he was scared somebody was going pull a gun out and shoot him if I didn't say yes.

"Uh... " I replied,
I was actually thinking of moping around the house reliving memories of you and I...
"I suppose, pick me up in an hour... ok?"

I heard him sigh in relief on the other line "sure... and Cam?"

Oh shit, he was gonna ask me something, oh fuck... oh fuck ... oh fuck...

"Yeah?" I asked suspiciously

"You wanna meet the guys from Green Day?"