Gerard sat on the floor as the beaming white light shone above his head. His skin prickled in the cold shower, just letting the droops of water trickle down his dyed red hair. He watched as water ran with red. It was either the dye or the blood from his head, he didn't care. After encountering and then repeatedly being kicked and punched by Tobias Hankel, his bully, he had run home, dizzily unaware that his head was bleeding, up until he collapsed.
He dried himself with a freshly washed towel, a rare luxury in the Way household. Gerard felt his cool bedsheets against his pale, deathly skin. He felt like if he just stayed right there, time could stand still, he could drift to sleep for as long as he wanted.
The morning came too quickly, the cold morning air, most people enjoyed, Gerard feared, as he feared what torture his school day would bring.
Gerard slipped out of pajamas and put his tattered black t-shirt on as well as his leather jacket. He found his eyeliner and quickly applied it around his eyes and grabbed his balaclava.
He smelt burnt toast and tried to slip out of his house without waking his hungover father, sat in his favorite recliner chair, with the strong smell of liquor flooding the room.
Luckily, Gerard's dad was more hungover than expected and didn't notice his on slip out with his little brother. The walk to school was not more than fifteen minutes.
"Mikey, have you got your lunch?"
"Umm... no. SORRY, I just forgot."
" uhh fine, here's a fiver, buy yourself whatever you want and wait for me outside of school when schools finish okay"
Gerard kneeled down and hugged his younger brother.
The first day of senior year and Gerard had no money for lunch.