Frank's POV

Letter 120
Hey Frankie! I know you don't have any classes today, so I just wanted to wish you a good day. I made you breakfast, which you've probably already seen. It's sitting right beside this note on the bedside table. Hope you like pancakes! Love you!
xoxog

I smiled down at the little letter that was sitting beside a short stack of pancakes. Gerard had probably made these while I was still sleeping, which made my heart warm. I didn't have classes today, none of the music students did, since the professor was out.

I quickly got out my phone to check my emails and see the assignments for today.

Hello class! Today you will be partnering up to work on a music project. The assignment is to record a video performance of a song you create with your teammate. You are allowed to choose who you work with.

That seemed simple enough. I decided that I would call Corey and ask him if we could do the project together. We had become pretty good friends over the past few months, so I felt most comfortable doing the project with him.

I quickly picked up my phone and dialed his number. Eventually, I heard his voice over the line. "Hey, Frank what's up?"

"Hey Corey. I was actually wondering if we could work together for the project in music. I don't really know anyone else." I carelessly laughed at how pathetic that sort of sound.

"Sure thing, Frank. Do you want to come to my room to start writing later today?"

"Of course. You live in the same dorm building as me, right? I'm pretty sure I saw you here awhile ago."

"Oh I actually live in the dorm by the music hall. Same one you used to live in. You probably did see me in the art dorm though, I go down there often to hang out with friends and stuff."

"Oh ok that's fine! Just tell me what room number you're in and I'll come by whenever you're ready."

I grimaced when Corey announced his room number. It was right next to my old room, also known as Axl's current room. It'll be fine. You don't have to deal with Axl anymore anyway, I thought to myself reassuringly.

We both agreed to meet up shortly after lunch time, so I hung up when there was no more talking left to do. Almost immediately, my mind drifted back over to the pancakes that were on the bedside table. My stomach was growling, indicating that it would be a good idea to eat.

It didn't take me long at all to devour the pancakes, considering I was practically starving. After that I began to feel tired. A nap couldn't do any bad, so I decided to lay down and try to fall asleep.

Eventually, it worked.

———

I woke up thinking that was possibly the best and wildest dream I've had in years. It actually was a very very interesting dream... and I had a feeling it would come in handy later.

(Author's Note: Foreshadowing? The world may never know.)

I didn't dwell on it too long though, instead writing it down as a note on my phone and then getting up to check the time. It was a little past lunch, so about the time that I had to meet up with Corey. I quickly threw on some clothes before walking out the door with my guitar.

I didn't really need to eat lunch. I already had a big breakfast, considering Gerard had made me decently sized pancakes. I decided that I could grab a snack on the way back to the dorm if I became hungry later.

A flush of old memories came back when I approached the dorm building next to the music hall. I always got an unpleasant feeling whenever I walked past this place, but damn, I actually had to go back there this time. Knowing that, it made me shiver.

It'll be fine Frank, I kept telling myself. Everyone in there is nice except Axl, and you don't have to worry about him anymore.

Eventually, I built the strength to walk myself into the building, and slowly walked up the stairs. With each passing step, I got closer and closer to the room I've dreaded all these years. Room 136, 137, 138, almost there, 139, and finally-

I didn't get to finish when the door to room 139 swung open. Shit, I mouthed the word.

"Frank! Miss me already, old friend? Well that's perfect because I don't have a partner yet and-"

"I'm working with Corey. Don't even think about it. I don't want anything to do with you, so just leave it."

"And why should I?" He asked taking a step closer.

"Because if you don't, I will call Jimmy and he will come here to find you and kiss you right on the lips. We wouldn't want you to get boy germs, now would we?" I rolled my eyes.

"Well Frankie, that would've worked if you were talking to me a few weeks ago. Sadly... things change. That doesn't bother me anymore. What does bother me is something else that's been on my mind for quite some time now..." he was now getting way too close for comfort, and I found myself backing away until I hit a wall and couldn't move any further.

"Listen man, if you could just retreat back to your room and leave me be, that would be much appreciated. I really have to start working on this project so..." I tried to move away, but he immediately slammed his hand against the wall and blocked my path.

"Wait!" He said suddenly and abruptly. "Don't go yet. Wouldn't you enjoy coming in for a beer or something? It's been so long... I'm sure Corey wouldn't mind. It seems like he's not even expecting you yet. He's not even opened his door! Please... just for a second?" He seemed awfully jittery for some reason, and I could tell his mind was messed up. This wasn't his natural state. He wouldn't be so resilient if he was thinking clearly.

"Axl. Listen. I really don't have time for this shit today, and I'm trying to make this easy for you. Just walk away, and leave me alone. I want nothing to do with you." He still just kept staring at me, wide-eyed. With even more attention, I was able to see a difference in his eyes. His pupils were dilated, so I decided to test the waters.

I slowly grabbed a spare pen from my pocket, and threw it towards the wall behind him. It was a very discrete gesture, so he wouldn't be able to tell that I threw it. Immediately after it hit the wall, he flinched and jumped back. My suspicions were confirmed that he was in fact paranoid.

This was another sign that he was under the influence of drugs.

He looked back and relaxed when he saw that it was just a pen hitting the wall. "Did you throw that?" He asked looking back at me.

I nodded in response before walking over and picking the pen up. "See? Just a pen. Nothing to be afraid of here."

He grunted before pushing me back against the wall, which caused a very loud thud to erupt in the hallway. "What the hell, man?! Why would you do that? Just to scare me? You sick little bastard!"

Finally, Corey's door opened and he rushed to the scene. "What the hell is going on out here, Axl?" He paused for a second and looked at me. "Frank? I didn't know you were here already. Please, come inside." He motioned towards his room and I gratefully walked in, sitting on a stool he had set up beside another one. I decided just to wait until he came back inside to start playing anything.

I didn't hear much, but I assumed Corey was giving a short lecture at Axl about drug use. I could barely make out a few words such as aggression, influence, bloodshot, and headaches. You usually associated these things with drugs, so it wasn't too hard to figure out.

Eventually, I heard a door close and Corey finally came inside, closing his door as well. "Sorry about that, man. I can't imagine what it must've been like for you to have to live with that guy for three years. Living next to him is just barely tolerable, but in the same room as him? I can't even imagine."

I laughed at his consideration. "Yeah, it sucked. That's alright though, because I don't have to deal with him anymore. Anyway, shall we get to work?"

"Yeah, let's do that. First of all, what type of music are you into? If we have a common ground, hopefully it'll be easier to work together."

"Well I'm mostly into punk music. However, I do enjoy pretty much every sub genre of rock that I can find. Metal, punk, alternative, post-hardcore, you name it. I always enjoy at least a few songs from each genre."

"Ahh good choices good choices. I don't think I'd be able to handle myself if I worked with someone who wanted to write a slow country song." We both chuckled before continuing. "So what topics do you write about? Random things? Feeling? Situations?"

"I guess just whatever I'm feeling that day. Whatever my emotions are sort of reflect onto my writing. How about you?"

"Same thing pretty much. For example, I'm really in the mood for screaming today. I'm not angry, not upset, just really in the mood for screaming. Ever felt that way before?"

"Definitely," I replied quickly. "Sometimes you don't have to be upset to scream. You just have to be some form of excited."

"Well. What are we waiting for? Shall we get to writing?"

"Definitely."

Writing with Corey proved to be a reasonably simple task. We were able to get a lot done by bouncing ideas off of each other. In about fifteen minutes, we had an idea completely developed.

The song was going to be post-hardcore, and multiple screams were going to be incorporated into it. The lyrics were to reflect no specific emotion, but rather multiple combined into one song. We decided to go with a simple guitar riff, mostly because we were lazy, and let the rest fall in place after that.

After an hour of work, we decided to call it quits for the day. The lyrics were completely written out and the instrumentals were off to a good start, so we would finish and revise tomorrow.

"I had a great time writing with you man, have a good day. See you tomorrow," Corey spoke before opening the door for me to leave.

"Thanks Corey. Bye." I waved goodbye before walking off.

When I got back to my own room, I checked the time. Gerard was about to get out of class for the day, so I figured I could write a letter before he arrived.

Letter 121
Thanks for the pancakes, Gee. They were delicious. I hope you had an extra fantastic day in class! I've been waiting all day to be able to see you again. Love you.
xofrnk

As soon as I finished writing, I set the letter down on his desk so he would be able to see it whenever he decided to study or something.

Afterwards, I laid down on my bed, and my mind began to wander off into deep thought.

I did this pretty often lately. I would sit down somewhere, and my mind would drift away. It mostly happened when I had nothing else to do, but lately it happened even more often.

I mostly thought about the future and every possibility it held. It was a rather intriguing topic actually. I couldn't help but think about the future. Hell, I practically lived in the future. A lot of that was caused by my anxiety.

As I got deeper into my thoughts, the door opened signaling that Gerard was back. "Fear not, young citizen, for I have arrived," he announced when closing the door. This caused me to chuckle a little bit, but I was still distracted by my own thoughts, so I made no further reaction.

Gerard seemed to notice this, as he soon decided to ask about it. "Tired?"

"No, not tired. Just... thinking," I answered honestly.

"What are you thinking about?" He asked as he laid down on the bed beside me, grabbing my hand. I returned the gesture by intertwining our fingers and looking over at him.

"Have you ever thought about the future, Gee?"

"Well everyone thinks about the future, Frankie. That's why we make plans and such."

"I know that. But do you ever get really invested in the future?"

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well..." I tried to think of a good way to explain it. "Here's an example. I think about the future in a lot of different ways. I think of the outcomes I want from the future, the outcomes I expect, the irrational ones, the ones I despise, and the backup plans. Sometimes I get scared that things will end up for the worst. Do you get what I'm saying?"

Gerard paused to think for a second, letting me know that he was truly considering my words. "Yeah. I get that. I'm personally worried for the future myself. But it just happens when it happens I guess."

I nodded in response. "Yeah. I guess you're right."

We continued to lay in the silence of the room before Gerard spoke up again. "Frank, if you don't mind me asking, where do you see yourself after college?"

This one actually made me stop and think for a good second. Where did I see myself after college? I tried to envision it for myself.

So far a very descriptive scene was being created.

I was driving home from work after another day of being a music teacher. I approached my decently sized house and walked inside. Arriving in, I greeted my husband, Gerard, with a kiss. He was sitting at his desk, working on a comic book. It looked incredible. When I walked further into the house, I heard the faint sound of child laughter coming from another room. I walked in to see my two sons having a lightsaber duel together. When they saw me enter, they immediately dropped their toys and ran to me, giving me a hug. I kissed the tops of both of their heads before leaving the room once again.

This was all that appeared in the scene, but I decided against telling Gerard all of that. I didn't want to creep him out with my ideas about us getting married in the future. I'm not sure where he stands on that, so it's better to wait.

"I'm not sure," I settled on saying. "What about you, Gee?"

"I'm not completely sure either, to be honest. Whatever it is, I'm sure I'll adapt to it quickly though."