Ummm, probably not what you were thinking but here's what I came up with! I hope you like it!
Gerard's not usually a light sleeper, but staying in the Paramour has put him on the edge. Every creek and crackle arouses him from sleep, and then he tosses and turns in his bed for ages before falling back asleep.
When someone knocks on the door, Gerard jumps, his heart hammering fast in his chest. He blinks at the door, trying to see better in the heavy darkness as the door creaks open and his brother's head pokes in. "Mikey?"
"Can, um, c-can I come in?"
Gerard frowns, confused. Mikey never asks him if he can do anything, he just does, and for a while Gerard's baffled into silence. When he finally finds his voice, Mikey's still in the doorway, looking small and scared, desperate to come in.
"You don't have to ask," Gerard says, shuffling on the bed to make room for Mikey. Mikey closes the door with careful, quiet motions and then just dives in the bed under the covers, pressing his face in the pillow while Gerard watches his body losing most of its tension.
"Mikey," Gerard says softly, wriggling on the bed until he's lying on his side close to Mikey, then touches Mikey's hair as he tries to turn his head to better see his face. "Is everything okay?"
"Fine," Mikey breathes out, his eyes closed. "Go back to sleep," he says, and then doesn't say anything else, already fast asleep.
--
"So what was that all about?" Gerard asks Mikey the next morning while they're both waiting for the water to boil. Mikey's turning the instant coffee tin in his hands, not looking up at Gerard when he tries to make eye contact.
"What do you mean?" he asks, measuring coffee powder in his vat of a mug with a teaspoon and then pouring water in, steam puffing out of the nozzle and curling out of the mug.
"Last night? I don't think you've slept in my bed since we were kids."
Mikey stays silent for a while as he stirs the coffee, spoon clinking against the edges of the cup. "It's nothing," he says finally, dropping the spoon in the sink. "Just forget about it."
--
But the next night Mikey's back in his room, curled up next to him when Gerard wakes up from an odd dream that felt disturbingly real, and he feels disoriented for a while, trying to remember where he is.
Mikey starts moaning in the pillow in distress, his brows furrowed, gripping the sheet tight in his fist.
"Mikey, wake up," Gerard whispers, shaking Mikey's shoulder. Mikey makes a loud noise, almost like a sob, before Gerard gets him awake.
"What--?"
"You were having a bad dream," Gerard says, only letting go of Mikey's shoulder when he's sure Mikey's completely awake and doesn't start freaking out.
"Shit, it was okay for a while. I felt safe, but then something happened--" Mikey rubs his face with his hand. "You were gone."
"Mikey -- what? Talk to me, I don't understand."
Mikey sighs, looking down at his knees like he's embarrassed. Then he gets up from the bed and looks around, grabbing Gerard's hoodie that's hanging from the back of a chair. "Go back to sleep, Gee. I'm okay, I just need to clear my head a little." He drapes the hoodie over his shoulders and leaves Gerard alone in the room.
--
Every night that Mikey spends in Gerard's room, Gerard sees the same dream. He's in a dark forest with Mikey, all around them pine trees that rise so far up to the black, stormy sky that they look like they go on forever. They walk down a mossy path with lanterns lighting their way, dark figures moving in the jungle of trees around them but not one dares to venture out to the narrow path. Gerard feels that they'll be safe for as long as they have the light.
Mikey stumbles on the same root every night and Gerard always catches his arm before Mikey gets thrown out of the path.
It feels like the path goes on forever, but Gerard still has a feeling that they don't walk without a purpose, that sooner or later they will come out on the other side of the forest, that they will get out if they just keep walking.
He confronts Mikey about it one afternoon when they're taking a break from recording. Ray and Bob are playing some game on Xbox in the living room, and Frank is sprawled out in a chair next to them, snickering whenever Bob's character gets swarmed by zombies and Ray has to come to his rescue.
"I've been having really weird dreams lately," Gerard says, studying Mikey's face. They're sitting on the floor in the kitchen, leaning against cupboards with coffee mugs warming their fingers.
Mikey cracks a smile that doesn't even come close to reaching his eyes. "What, you too?"
"Yeah, every night the same one. I'm walking in a forest with you--" that catches Mikey's attention, and he turns to look at Gerard, surprised. "We're in the pajamas we wore when we were little... remember? The ones with the sheep? And we have lanters--" Gerard sighs, raking a hand through his hair. "What do you think it means?"
Mikey blinks, then presses his head back down, looking at the mug resting on his knees. "I think it means I'm not going insane after all."
Gerard frowns, not understanding. "What do you mean? Talk to me."
Mikey takes a while before answering, but when he does, Gerard can tell Mikey's being completely honest with him.
"Every night since we got here I've been in that forest," Mikey confesses, placing the mug on the floor and burying his face in his hands. "Alone in the dark with all the monsters until you came along. You brought the light with you."
Gerard's at a loss. He knew Mikey was having bad dreams, but that they were both having the same dream? "I -- this is fucking surreal."
"I don't think anything in the forest can hurt me when you're there. It's still disturbing, but at least I don't wake up to monsters pulling me out of the path every night anymore. You always catch me before I fall."
"Always," Gerard says, his voice sounding fierce in his ears. "We'll get out of that forest together, okay?"
Mikey's worrying his lip, looking sad, at a loss. "I didn't know I'd be pulling you in the dream when I started sleeping next to you. I just thought being close to you helped me relax, turn the dream into something not so terrifying. I never would have come to your room if I'd known you'd start seeing the same nightmare."
"Mikey, listen. We're getting out of that place together, okay? Do you think I'm gonna let you sleep alone anymore? I'm not leaving you alone there."
"But--"
"Mikey, shut up. You're moving into my room and that's final. Don't even try to talk me out of this because you can't."
Mikey studies Gerard's face for a while, searching his eyes, and he sighs, burying his face in his knees. "This place freaks me out so much, Gee. I wish we'd never come here."
Gerard runs his hand down Mikey's back and smooths out Mikey's hood on his shoulders. "I know, I know. Everything's gonna be fine, though. You're not alone anymore. And our album's gonna be so great, and hey, at least we'll have cool stories to tell everyone when we're finally out of this place, right?"
Mikey snorts and shakes his head, but there's a small, genuine smile forming on his lips. "Yeah, real cool stories alright."
(and then in my head they get out of the forest on the last night they spend in the mansion, and perhaps bob, ray and frank are somehow involved too? like they're all lost in the forest and mikey and gerard have to find them before they all lose their miiiiiinds~)
no subject
Gerard's not usually a light sleeper, but staying in the Paramour has put him on the edge. Every creek and crackle arouses him from sleep, and then he tosses and turns in his bed for ages before falling back asleep.
When someone knocks on the door, Gerard jumps, his heart hammering fast in his chest. He blinks at the door, trying to see better in the heavy darkness as the door creaks open and his brother's head pokes in. "Mikey?"
"Can, um, c-can I come in?"
Gerard frowns, confused. Mikey never asks him if he can do anything, he just does, and for a while Gerard's baffled into silence. When he finally finds his voice, Mikey's still in the doorway, looking small and scared, desperate to come in.
"You don't have to ask," Gerard says, shuffling on the bed to make room for Mikey. Mikey closes the door with careful, quiet motions and then just dives in the bed under the covers, pressing his face in the pillow while Gerard watches his body losing most of its tension.
"Mikey," Gerard says softly, wriggling on the bed until he's lying on his side close to Mikey, then touches Mikey's hair as he tries to turn his head to better see his face. "Is everything okay?"
"Fine," Mikey breathes out, his eyes closed. "Go back to sleep," he says, and then doesn't say anything else, already fast asleep.
--
"So what was that all about?" Gerard asks Mikey the next morning while they're both waiting for the water to boil. Mikey's turning the instant coffee tin in his hands, not looking up at Gerard when he tries to make eye contact.
"What do you mean?" he asks, measuring coffee powder in his vat of a mug with a teaspoon and then pouring water in, steam puffing out of the nozzle and curling out of the mug.
"Last night? I don't think you've slept in my bed since we were kids."
Mikey stays silent for a while as he stirs the coffee, spoon clinking against the edges of the cup. "It's nothing," he says finally, dropping the spoon in the sink. "Just forget about it."
--
But the next night Mikey's back in his room, curled up next to him when Gerard wakes up from an odd dream that felt disturbingly real, and he feels disoriented for a while, trying to remember where he is.
Mikey starts moaning in the pillow in distress, his brows furrowed, gripping the sheet tight in his fist.
"Mikey, wake up," Gerard whispers, shaking Mikey's shoulder. Mikey makes a loud noise, almost like a sob, before Gerard gets him awake.
"What--?"
"You were having a bad dream," Gerard says, only letting go of Mikey's shoulder when he's sure Mikey's completely awake and doesn't start freaking out.
"Shit, it was okay for a while. I felt safe, but then something happened--" Mikey rubs his face with his hand. "You were gone."
"Mikey -- what? Talk to me, I don't understand."
Mikey sighs, looking down at his knees like he's embarrassed. Then he gets up from the bed and looks around, grabbing Gerard's hoodie that's hanging from the back of a chair. "Go back to sleep, Gee. I'm okay, I just need to clear my head a little." He drapes the hoodie over his shoulders and leaves Gerard alone in the room.
--
Every night that Mikey spends in Gerard's room, Gerard sees the same dream. He's in a dark forest with Mikey, all around them pine trees that rise so far up to the black, stormy sky that they look like they go on forever. They walk down a mossy path with lanterns lighting their way, dark figures moving in the jungle of trees around them but not one dares to venture out to the narrow path. Gerard feels that they'll be safe for as long as they have the light.
Mikey stumbles on the same root every night and Gerard always catches his arm before Mikey gets thrown out of the path.
It feels like the path goes on forever, but Gerard still has a feeling that they don't walk without a purpose, that sooner or later they will come out on the other side of the forest, that they will get out if they just keep walking.
He confronts Mikey about it one afternoon when they're taking a break from recording. Ray and Bob are playing some game on Xbox in the living room, and Frank is sprawled out in a chair next to them, snickering whenever Bob's character gets swarmed by zombies and Ray has to come to his rescue.
"I've been having really weird dreams lately," Gerard says, studying Mikey's face. They're sitting on the floor in the kitchen, leaning against cupboards with coffee mugs warming their fingers.
Mikey cracks a smile that doesn't even come close to reaching his eyes. "What, you too?"
"Yeah, every night the same one. I'm walking in a forest with you--" that catches Mikey's attention, and he turns to look at Gerard, surprised. "We're in the pajamas we wore when we were little... remember? The ones with the sheep? And we have lanters--" Gerard sighs, raking a hand through his hair. "What do you think it means?"
Mikey blinks, then presses his head back down, looking at the mug resting on his knees. "I think it means I'm not going insane after all."
Gerard frowns, not understanding. "What do you mean? Talk to me."
Mikey takes a while before answering, but when he does, Gerard can tell Mikey's being completely honest with him.
"Every night since we got here I've been in that forest," Mikey confesses, placing the mug on the floor and burying his face in his hands. "Alone in the dark with all the monsters until you came along. You brought the light with you."
Gerard's at a loss. He knew Mikey was having bad dreams, but that they were both having the same dream? "I -- this is fucking surreal."
"I don't think anything in the forest can hurt me when you're there. It's still disturbing, but at least I don't wake up to monsters pulling me out of the path every night anymore. You always catch me before I fall."
"Always," Gerard says, his voice sounding fierce in his ears. "We'll get out of that forest together, okay?"
Mikey's worrying his lip, looking sad, at a loss. "I didn't know I'd be pulling you in the dream when I started sleeping next to you. I just thought being close to you helped me relax, turn the dream into something not so terrifying. I never would have come to your room if I'd known you'd start seeing the same nightmare."
"Mikey, listen. We're getting out of that place together, okay? Do you think I'm gonna let you sleep alone anymore? I'm not leaving you alone there."
"But--"
"Mikey, shut up. You're moving into my room and that's final. Don't even try to talk me out of this because you can't."
Mikey studies Gerard's face for a while, searching his eyes, and he sighs, burying his face in his knees. "This place freaks me out so much, Gee. I wish we'd never come here."
Gerard runs his hand down Mikey's back and smooths out Mikey's hood on his shoulders. "I know, I know. Everything's gonna be fine, though. You're not alone anymore. And our album's gonna be so great, and hey, at least we'll have cool stories to tell everyone when we're finally out of this place, right?"
Mikey snorts and shakes his head, but there's a small, genuine smile forming on his lips. "Yeah, real cool stories alright."
(and then in my head they get out of the forest on the last night they spend in the mansion, and perhaps bob, ray and frank are somehow involved too? like they're all lost in the forest and mikey and gerard have to find them before they all lose their miiiiiinds~)