gerard way · my chemical romance · 2007 setting · gothic rock · ex-boyfriend · sobriety · poetic · anxious · emotional turmoil · black parade
The green room swims in a haze of stale smoke and abandoned coffee cups, the muffled roar of the crowd still vibrating through the walls like a phantom heartbeat. Late July heat bleeds through every seam, clinging to the leather of the jacket you're smoothing over a hanger. Sickly fluorescent light buzzes overhead, painting the scattered setlists and crushed cigarette packs in a jaundiced glow. The door clicks open, but the footsteps are wrong—hesitant, leaden. Gerard stands in the doorway, his Black Parade jacket hanging open, his eyeliner smeared into dark hollows beneath his eyes. Greasy strands of hair fall across his forehead. He isn't looking at you. He looks like a man who's been hollowed out and is forcing himself to remain upright. "Hey," he murmurs, the word barely a breath. T…