So, I was tagged once again for the songfic challenge, this time by Pi0_Human. I actually don't think I really knew this song until now, so that's a thing. 

And since I've been wanting to do something with these two for a while, but wasn't sure what... Have some teenager Joe and Cleo! But anyway, I hope you enjoy!

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I was scared of dentists and the dark
I was scared of pretty girls and starting conversations

Believe it or not, Joe hadn't always been a master wordsmith. Or at least, he wasn't so open about his linguistic prowess. He had been a loner out of fear of how other people would react to him. Cleo was the one who got him out of his shell a little bit, and he knew he wouldn't be the outspoken poet he was today without her. 

Oh, all my friends are turning green
You're the magician's assistant in their dreams

He remembered how they first met, back when they were teenagers. He had been wandering in a more rundown part of the HUB, trying to find someplace no one would bother him while working on his poems, when he saw her, covered in spray paint, working hard on a masterpiece of parrots, painted in such a way that it looked as if they were actually flying.

Oh
Oh and they come unstuck

Their eyes met, and a startled silence fell between them. Eventually, she gave him a grin and a wave, not at all ashamed of being caught doing what some might call vandalizing. 

"I personally think that this is a better look than dirty walls." She had claimed proudly. "But another perspective might be helpful as well. What do you think?"

Before he could stop himself, he blurted out, "I admire the irony of community services provided by acts usually deemed rebellious by higher authorities."

He was surprised when she laughed, one filled with such fervor that despite the necrosis, she didn't seem like someone who was technically dead, but rather someone who was more alive than most people could ever dream to be. 

A beautiful friendship was born that day.

Lady, running down to the riptide
Taken away to the dark side
I wanna be your left hand man

"C'mon Joe! The water's fine, why are you still on shore?" The redheaded zombie shouted to him as he looked out over his friend on the shoreline.

A tiny voice in his mind was telling him that this was a bad idea. The air was very brisk, and the water was probably pretty cold. Cleo could withstand is, but Joe might not be able to. But that didn't matter to him. His doubts fell to the wayside, and he ran in, caution thrown to the winds,  full of elation in that moment.

I love you when you're singing that song and
I got a lump in my throat 'cause
You're gonna sing the words wrong

Quickly, they ended up engaging in a splash war, the two of them just enjoying life and having a blast. Cleo seemed to be dancing, and Joe felt as though he would see her burst into song at the drop of a hat. And he would have sung along with her, no matter how loud or off key they sounded. 

Is this movie that I think you'll like
This guy decides to quit his job and heads to New York City
This cowboy's running from himself
And she's been living on the highest shelf

Oh
Oh and they come unstuck

And sing they did, a song that neither of them would remember, nor knew beforehand. The words spilled out of their souls like a waterfall. They were here and now, fully entrenched in the present, and nothing else mattered at all.

At least until the eloquent speaking Joe started slurring his words together, sounding almost as though he was drunk. Cleo stopped her own singing and stared at her friend in horror, realizing what was happening. 

Lady, running down to the riptide
Taken away to the dark side
I wanna be your left hand man
I love you when you're singing that song and
I got a lump in my throat 'cause
You're gonna sing the words wrong

"Joe, we should head back to shore now. It's getting late." She suggested, thinly veiled urgency in her voice.

"Mmm... prob'ly...I'm a bit tired..." He replied sluggishly, sending more alarm bells through Cleo's mind. 

The two of them began to swim back to shore.

I just wanna, I just wanna know
If you're gonna, if you're gonna stay
I just gotta, I just gotta know
I can't have it, I can't have it any other way

I swear she's destined for the screen
Closest thing to Michelle Pfeiffer that you've ever seen, oh

Maybe it was the delirium that was making Joe think of Cleo like an angel, but that was exactly what she looked like in his semi-conscious state. He knew what was happening to him. He knew he had caught hypothermia from the cold water, and was fighting to stay awake. But he was too tired and confused to feel afraid.

"I'm an idiot..." She muttered.

"Nooo... my choice... my fault..." He mumbled in reply, not able to think of something more to say, or say it before feeling himself being dragged onto shore by his friend. As the sand stuck to his cold, wet skin, he drifted off into unconciousness.

Lady, running down to the riptide
Taken away to the dark side
I wanna be your left hand man
I love you when you're singing that song and
I got a lump in my throat 'cause
You're gonna sing the words wrong

When Joe came to, he was in a hospital bed, Cleo sitting in a nearby chair. The poet was able to think clearly again, and he didn't feel so numb. The redheaded zombie girl noticed he was awake, and immediately was at his side.

Oh lady, running down to the riptide
Taken away to the dark side
I wanna be your left hand man
I love you when you're singing that song and
I got a lump in my throat 'cause
You're gonna sing the words wrong

"Joe, I am so, so sorry! I thought... I thought..." Cleo stuttered, unable to get the words out. But Joe knew what she was trying to say, and it nearly choked him up to see how much he cared.

"I apologize for scaring you like that, Cleo. I should have realized that this could happen. But this wasn't your fault, not in the slightest." He reassured her.
Oh lady, running down to the riptide
Taken away to the dark side
I wanna be your left hand man
I love you when you're singing that song and
I got a lump in my throat 'cause
You're gonna sing the words wrong

After making sure that he was really on the road to recovering, Cleo swatted at Joe's arm. "Don't ever scare me like that again, Joe Hills!" She reprimanded.

Joe couldn't help but grin. "Yeah, next time I think we should skip the swimming." He joked. Cleo laughed, and things felt okay again

I got a lump in my throat because you're gonna sing the words wrong

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Not quite sure what this is, but here you go. This turned out surprisingly angsty, though not really that much. But considering the feel of the song, yeah, pretty dark. But things turned out okay in the end.

This is also the longest oneshot I've written so far, and I'm proud of that.

Now, since I failed in tagging people last time, I'll do it now!

RaeTheStar: Hurricane by Thirty Seconds to Mars

OreoBoi191: Sarcasm by Get Scared

SpeckledFire: Astronaut by Simple Plan

MightysWolf: Awake and Alive by Skillet

TheFantasyGaming: Hold on to Memories by Disturbed

Hope you enjoyed! Comments are appreciated! 

-Aqua