AN: Hey everyone, this chapter hasn't changed much, but please enjoy!
Sonny did his morning rutine and was driven to school that day, his mom making sure he didn't take a detour. The thought of running away was now so fresh in his mind. He had to do it, before time ran out. He looked both ways and when the coast was clear, he leaped out of the car.
"Sonny, why do you have your laptop?" His mother asked, a thin, black eyebrow raised above her makeupless face. He swallowed the lump in his throat.
"Project," Was the only word he could say, but it was enough. His mother nodded as he closed the door and walked up to the school to meet today's fate.
More unintelligent signs clung to his locker, by this time, Sonny didn't really care to rip them off. He shoved his backpack in and shut the metal door. Soon he was going to be out of there...
He made his way to the principal's office after being dragged there by Mrs. Parker. As he sat in the back room with his books, he just sketched images of the things he saw around him. He waited a while and dug through his mind for answers.
Even though he was only 15, he's been having alot of weird dreams. Some consisting of things he would never think of on a regular basis, like sex. He bit his lip and stared at his desk. Sure he's watched porn before, but his dreams have been so elaborate and real. He mindlessly began to rub his thigh, but then stopped. What was he doing? He wasn't about to masturbate in the principal's office, as much as he would have. He played with his pencil a bit and looked at the time, his lips pressed into a straight line as he realized there was about 3 hours till lunch. He sighed miserably and slammed his head onto the desk. If only he had a cell phone like normal people, he could go online or something. Anything to take away his boredom.
Sonny looked at his paper once more and actually took in all that he has drawn. One of the pictures was a lamp post. Big deal. Another were the flowers set on the principal's windowcil. The yellows and oranges of the flowers really brought out the dullness of the office itself. But then, Sonny's eye caught something on his paper. A man was on the front cover, wearing regular everyday clothing. But the thing that really was weird about the man was that he wore a giant full-faced helmet in the shape of a mouse head. Sonny was suddenly interested as to where he's seen this before. He looked around and finally witnessed the folded up newspaper that was laying in the trash. Sonny picked it up and straightened out the paper.
"The Deadmouse?". Who was that? Sonny decided to read the rest of the collunm on page 3.
"'The Deadmouse', as every local raver may know, has, yet again, appeared at the 'Sunset Center' east of Calling Street. Will the mouse ever reveal his true self?"
As Sonny read on, he started developing a slight facination of the mystery man. He could only wish that he could go out in public and not look like a complete tool all the time. As Sonny read on, he started to sketch the man and the helmet, adding and erasing things on the mouse head. Ryhnstones, flashing lights, flowers, synthetic designs. Sonny laughed at his own work and continued on this cycle for what seemed like only three minutes, but the lunch bell finally rang.
Sonny looked up at the clock in surprise. He quickly grabbed his drawings and put them in his shirt. He slipped out of the office and was walking down the halls. He stood proud and felt like he was 7 feet tall, but instantly shrank when he saw Mrs. Parker running towards him.
"What do you think you're doing?" She yelled at him. Sonny jumped a bit and froze in place. He could smell the alchohol on her breath.
"I-I-I-I," He couldn't speak.
"Oh, sweety, were you just getting lunch?" She asked. He nodded quickly and couldn't meet her eyes. She chuckled and rubbed his head, "Sorry, I thought you were running away. Here's some change for lunch," She handed him a ten. She was clearly drunk.
He looked at it with huge eyes and waited until she waddled into the office, then he booked it to his locker, grabbed his backpack and ran the oppisite way and out the exit.
He didn't stop running until he met the edge of the park about a kilometer away. He then gasped for breath as he stopped to look back at the school. He smiled to himself and started to laugh. He did it. He was free. He looked away from the school and off into the streets. He breathed in the scent of grime and freedom. He decided to take a seperate route then he normally did, just to explore. As he walked down the street with his bag slung over his shoulder, he looked around his cautiously, making sure nobody was around to take him back to school. But as he walked, he could smell a warm, fresh smell coming from the local pizzaria. Well, with ten bucks to spare, he could grab a slice. So that's what he did.
Joel was reading the newspaper as he walked down the street, ready to go pick up Meowingtons. He laughed at last night's story and just threw the paper in the garbage. What a joke. He knew he was popular and all, but not newspaper popular. Who in the hell of this city would even read a story about a man wearing such a ridiculous outfit in public? Joel remembered all the crazy shit he saw in New York when he lived there with his boyfriend briefly. He shrugged the thought off and continued his walk. He held the giant box at arm that held the mousehead, and his iPod was, once again, blasting in his ears. He couldn't wait to get Meowingtons and maybe get a job.
He needed a place to stay more then anything. The colder seasons were coming through and he didn't want to beg anymore. He needed help. He walked up to the pizzaria and into the alleyway. He did his signature knock, awaiting the tiny voice of Melody, but then froze. There was silence. He did the knock again, but this time when the door opened, a bigger man came out with Meowingtons in his arm and a grim look on his face.
"Get the fuck away from my daughter, you pedophile!" He yelled and tossed Meowingtons towards him.
Joel caught the cat, dropping the box to the floor. It opened just a bit to reveal a big red ear. He quickly put Meowingtons on the floor and shoved the head back into the box.
"Get out of here!" The man yelled again and pushed Joel backwards. He slammed into the wall and by that point, he was frightened to death.
"I'm not a pedophile!" Joel yelled back.
"Than stop sliming around people's young, defensless children!" He yelled one last time, punched Joel square in the jaw and left the scene, cowardly running back into the pizzaria.
Joel sunk to the ground and began to hiss in pain. He's never been punched before. The pain was so endearing that it made Joel's eyes fill with tears. He was never going to see Melody again... she was like his best friend. His only friend (well, human friend). Joel began to cry.
"H-hey there," He heard a tiny voice. He looked up quickly and saw a boy. A short, younger-looking boy with a square face, shabby clothing and long, black hair.
Sonny couldn't help but wonder what a grown man was doing, crying like he's just come back from his dad's funeral, with a box. A small black and white cat came running up to Sonny, leaping into his arms. Sonny was startled for a second, but the softness of the cat made him feel happier and braver. He walked up to the older man and stuck out a hand for him.
"Here," He said, shaking his hand a bit to get the man's attention. "I'm Sonny,"
The man raised an eyebrow and took the younger man's hand. Sonny tried to hoist the man up, but he got up on his own and shook Sonny's hand.
"Joel," He stated, wiping away his tears and grabbing his box. He looked at Meowingtons and directed him into the box.
Sonny caught a glimpse as to what was in the box. Big. Red. Round. Sonny gasped.
"Y-you're... 'The Deadmouse'," He whispered. Joel sighed and closed the box slightly once his cat was secure inside.
"Yup," Joel stated and pushed Sonny aside, "And if you don't mind, I'm going to go now,"
"W-wait a second!" Sonny grabbed onto Joel's hand. Joel felt a shock of lightning rush through him from the skin-on-skin contact. He hasn't been touched like that in years. He sighed.
"What, kid?" He asked, a little annoyed.
Sonny didn't really know what to say. Now that he's found The Deadmouse, he was unsure of what to do, so he just let go of his hand and felt a great nervousness wash over him. Joel's face was cleaner than any other homeless man's have been, and he was shaven. He smelled kind of good, so what was wrong with him? Was Joel actually homeless? If he wasn't, why did the owner tell him to stop lurking about his daughter? Why did he punch Joel? He must be homeless...
"I'm homeless," Sonny said, feeling a sence of pride in himself, "I just ran away from home... maybe you ca-"
"What? Help you? I don't need your fucking sap story, kid," Joel snorted and began to walk away. Sonny felt the anger boil up in him again. Nobody has to hear what he has to say and it's been causing him a great amount of stress.
"I can help you! You can help me! We can help each other!" Sonny yelled. Joel stopped and quickly turned to look at him. He took two long strides and grabbed Sonny's collar. He pushed him up against the wall. Joel looked him dead in the eyes.
"I don't need you... you don't need me... I've been living on these streets for 2 years now, Tony-"
"Sonny," Sonny corrected.
"What?" Joel asked, clearly not impressed with the kid's attitude toward him.
Sonny growled and pushed Joel away from him.
"My name's Sonny Moore. And I'm not a kid, I'm 15," He said.
Joel laughed and lightened up a bit. He remembered when he was 15 and had big city dreams, trying to stand up to people bigger then he was. He just sighed and smiled.
"Well I'm Joel Zimmerman, I'm 19 years old," He stuck out his hand. "Nice to meet you, Sonny-boy,"
Sonny swallowed a hard lump of courage and shook the man's hand. Joel was still technically a kid too. He wanted to hear his story.
"So I'm guessing you're wondering what I'm doing sitting here, crying like a fucking child who just wet their pants on their way to Sunday school," He laughed again and motioned Sonny to follow him. They walked down the street and Sonny was looking everywhere he possibly could, taking in the new scenery of the city. He felt such a rush of adrenaline.
"I am," Sonny nodded, back to his quieter self.
"Welp," Joel started, they were at the park again. Sonny felt a little nervous as he peered back at the far away school. "It all started when I, similar to you, ran away from home. It was a nice summer day and me and a couple buddies decided to go out partying. You know, get our drinks on," He chuckled, a far-away look in his eyes as he continued, "I came home drunk, not knowing any better, and waking up my parents. They started to yell... and my parents, my God, they yell every day and every night. It just never fucking stops." He shook his head and then looked down at Meowingtons in his lap now, purring softly at his touch, "Well that night my parents, after they were done yelling at me and hitting me, they started on each other. Yelling and screaming and I just remember having a huge headache," He chuckled, "They were both massive alchoholics. They were abusive. They cheated on each other, stole from each other. Stole from me," He pressed his lips together breifly and closed his eyes, leaning his head back slightly. "I left then and there. Nothing to protect myself. No money, no cell phone. Only my iPod," He showed Sonny his silver iPod nano and tucked it away safetly in his pocket. He took a deep breath. "The only other place I knew of was my, erm, boyfriend at the time," He looked quickly over at Sonny to see his reaction, but he didn't move. Sonny just stared at Meowingtons as Joel pet him. He let out a sigh of relief.
"What happened then?" Sonny asked. "How did you become 'The Deadmouse'?"
Joel raised an eyebrow at Sonny. He just met Joel and Joel has never talked to a person for this long before. Except for Melody.
"Well, one day at my boyfriend's house, we were on the computer. I had to change the video card, and we found this fucking dead mouse just stuck in there," He laughed, remembering the time, "But after he kicked me out of the apartment, I've been homeless and bored and was just picking through the trash at the dump. I found a whole bunch of awesome shit in there, so I created the mouse head." He shrugged and opened the lid of the box so that only they could see it.
"Oh," Sonny nodded, "So is it just to keep your identity safe?"
"Well, that, and it just looks fucking cool and all the chicks seem to dig it when I fuck them with it on," He laughed. Sonny blushed and looked down at his hands. Joel stopped laughing and looked at Sonny with a raised eyebrow, "Dude... you're not still a..."
Sonny looked at Joel with a clenched jaw. Joel's eyes widened and he smiled big.
"You're a fucking virgin!" He yelled.
"Shhh!" Sonny grabbed Joel's shoulders, "Shut the fuck up! It's not funny!" He hissed.
"Calm down, it's cool," Joel put his hands up in surrender, "But seriously? Like look at you, you're fucking sexy!"
Sonny's blush deepened because, first, nobody has ever called him sexy before, and two, he didn't know if Joel was joking or not.
It was a strange feeling Joel got when he looked at Sonny. It felt like he was looking into the past at himself, willing himself to do all the crazy shit before he got too old to enjoy it. And that's exactly what he wanted for Sonny, to take him under his wing and show him a real adventure. With a face like his and a mind like Joel's, they would create great chaos. It was fortunate enough that the boy was homeless and looking for a little street-wise help, but to gain a new friend and hopefully companion, now that sounded like music to his ears. Joel wanted to create something out of Sonny.
"Well... your hair now... it needs something," Joel closed an eye and looked at Sonny with a frown. Sonny raised an eyebrow when he saw Joel's hand cover half Sonny's face. "Aha! We're going to make you into an updated version of Ellen fucking Page!" Joel smiled.
"Isn't she bald now?"
"I said updated, didn't I?" He gave Sonny an evil grin. Sonny swallowed hard.
Sonny groaned. He wondered why Joel was being so open to him. They weren't even technically friends. But just an hour later, Sonny felt the left side of his head burn. He could see all his black hair falling to the ground and Joel snipped away, but Sonny trusted the stranger. He kept his fingers crossed that it would look at least better then his mess before.
"Ta-da!" Joel took a step back to admire his work, "Man, do I know how to pick 'em," He smiled at Sonny. Sonny frowned.
"Let me see!" He pleaded.
"Alright, alright, just let me find a mirror," Joel said, leaving Sonny alone.
Sonny couldn't believe Joel found a pair of perfectly fine scissors in the dump, let alone instruments to create the mouse head.
Joel picked around in the junk yard until he came across a broken vanity. He dragged it over to Sonny and Sonny was scared to look at himself, but when he did, he wasn't dissapointed.
"Wow..." Sonny'seyes widened when he realized that half his hair was cut off, showing the skin of his head. He couldn't stop staring at it because it actually looked good.
"You like?" Joel asked, taking out a cigarette from his package and placing it into his mouth, "I learned from cutting my own hair all these years," He mumbled searching in his pockets for his lighter. Sonny looked at Joel and watched him with wide eyes. He forgot to snag his dad's cigarettes...
"I don't get you," Sonny said, scratching at his head where the patch of missing hair was, "You don't have money, yet you can smoke cigarettes?"
"Dude, I've been smoking for years," He chuckled and took off his jacket, eager to find his lighter, "When you're addicted, you'd do anything for these bad boys." He smiled at the pack and then looked at Sonny.
Joel noticed Sonny kept his stare on the pack, "Did you want one, Sonny virgin?" He laughed.
Sonny didn't snap back, but he nodded, "Sure," Joel raised an eyebrow and kept a smirk on, throwing Sonny the pack.
Sonny stared down at the pack. The worn-out cardboard exterior felt great in his hands. He opened the pack and found the white rods wrapped in thin, gold paper. He slid one out and tossed Joel the pack back.
"Aha!" Joel exclaimed, finding his small yellow lighter, "Come here," Joel demanded. Sonny went over and was pushed onto his knees next to Joel.
Joel leaned forward and raised his lighter toward Sonny's nose. Sonny flinched and Joel sighed. He grabbed the cigarette from Sonny's hand and held it between his fingers.
"Open your mouth," He demanded. Sonny parted his lips and Joel popped the rod into his mouth, "Now hold it with your teeth and light it, like this." Joel did a demonstration on his own cigarette, taking a deep drag and blowing the deadly smoke into Sonny's face. Sonny caughed, but took the lighter and attempted to light his own. Joel sighed, took the lighter from Sonny's hands and lit the cigarette. Sonny took a drag, without leaving Joel's eyes, and blew out the smoke slowly. He smiled lightly and Joel nodded.
Joel pressed his lips into a straight line and then leaned back away from Sonny slwoly and cleared his throat, looking off into the distance and taking another drag.
It was a weird feeling Joel had, but he felt like he and Sonny would become great friends. Excitement shot through him at this new thought and he smiled big.
"You know what, I think we can become great friends," Sonny said, gagging on the smoke that was burning his lungs.
Joel laughed as he thought about it. A matter of fact, he liked Sonny.
Well you know, I'm taking you raving tonight!" Joel exclaimed.
Sonny made a horrified face, "B-b-but won't I get in trouble for tha-" Sonny stopped mid-sentence because the dissapointed look Joel gave him then was overwhelming.
"We sneak in from the back," He shrugged and bit his lip, "You need a new name though, 'Sonny' just sounds too Tellatubbies..." He waved a hand dismissivley, "Got any nicknames?"
Sonny thought for a second back when he lived in Los Angeles with his friends...
"Hey! Skrilly! Pass the ball!" Burt, one of Sonny's good friends, yelled from the other side of the court.
"You can make the pass, Skrills!" Pina encouraged him.
"Yo, Skrillex, don't be a little pussy and eat the damn bug!" Henry, the school bully, forced Sonny onto the bug.
Why did they even call him that? "... My name is Skrillex..." Sonny thought to himself. Joel raised an eyebrow. Sonny smiled and looked up, "My name is Skrillex." He nodded. Joel nodded and smiled, clearly impressed, "Not bad, Skrillex. Rolls right off the tongue,"
Joel moved a couple dirty books out of the way and chuckled when he came across a pair of black Wayfarer sunglasses. They were a little scratched up, but he handed them to Sonny anyway.
"Put these on," He demanded. Sonny raised an eyebrow and put on the glasses. Joel smiled largely and nodded, "He's aliiiiiive!" Joel howled into the air and started to laugh in a villianous manner.
AN: (: