The summer heat on warped tour became somewhat of a comfort. They were back on for a full round this. year and couldn’t have been more excited to be back. Granted, the unpredictable stage times and the sweltering sun weren’t the best, but hearing all the fans scream the lyrics back at them made it special. They had 48 stops this time around, but they weren’t cramped in a van that broke down every two days anymore.

They had a tour bus. It could fit the band and most of the instruments comfortably, aside from the drum kit and amps, and they had a place to rest and eat. Since Revenge took off, the fans seemed to be growing at a speed that they couldn’t believe. In the first week alone they had sold over 11,000 copies. It had become a whirlwind of interviews, photo shoots, and press conferences, and now they were getting back on the road.

The bus call was leaning into the wee hours of the morning as the boys trudged along to load up. Mikey was standing off to the side, an overfilled backpack and duffle bag strung on his shoulder, coffee in hand. He looked as carefree as he always did watching the crew members try and make a game plan for loading. Gerard was next to him looking somewhat the same, his hair askew, still in his pajamas, sipping on a coffee of his own. Frank seemed the most awake despite the fact that the sun hadn’t risen yet. He was eagerly waiting to jump on and claim a bunk of his own.

That left Ray, who was still half asleep, watching Frank with furrowed brows. He was sitting on the sidewalk, bags set beside him, blanket wrapped tightly around himself as he watched Frank talk animatedly about whatever the man could. None of them were early risers, per se, but Frank seemed to always get the pre-tour jitters. He’d hardly sleep the day before the tour began and never appeared overly exhausted.

Ray sighed, shaking his head, as he checked his watch. They definitely should’ve already been on the bus by now.

”Wasn’t the bus supposed to be here like twenty minutes ago or something?” Ray groaned, looking towards the others.

Mikey just shrugged before turning towards Gerard, tilting his head in question. Gerard checked his watch before shrugging as well.

“Yeah, I’ll call Brian. See what the hold-up is.” Gerard replied, pulling out his phone.

Ray sighed before resting his head against his knees. He was ready to put his stuff away and take as long of a nap as he could. He heard Frank starting a new story as Mikey just sat there nodding every once in a while. He must’ve fallen asleep because the next thing he knew was Gerard gently shaking his shoulders. He groaned as he lifted his head up, rubbing. his eyes in the process.

“C’mon, the bus is here. You can go back to sleep once we’re loaded if you want.” Gerard said softly, rubbing the taller man's shoulder before reaching out his hand to help him stand up.

“Thanks, man,” Ray mumbled. He picked up his bags before making his way to the small steps at the front.

He walked slowly, watching Frank shove Mikey before bolting in front of him, letting out a heinous laugh as he ran through the bus. Mikey just let out a groan before handing Gerard his coffee and running after him. Ray shook his head in faux annoyance, though he couldn’t hide the smile on his face.

They were all excited to be on a bus. It felt like they’d won the lottery. After opening for bands, seeing their buses, and having to embarrassingly tell them the dingy van was theirs, they felt on top of the world. Plus this meant they didn’t have to take shifts driving anymore, which Ray was especially looking forward to after Frank almost took them all out after a raccoon ran in front of the van.

When Ray got on the bus, it seemed like everyone’s energy tripled. Frank and Mikey were bouncing around trying to figure out all the cool features, like the remote-controlled curtains. He set his bag down next to the small couch, taking in the new surroundings he’d be calling home for the next few months (and hopefully even more if they were lucky). There was a TV attached to the wall, an Xbox with it as well, a small diner booth to eat at, and a mini kitchenette next to it. There was a slightly larger sofa across from where he was standing, with cabinets above it for storage. He had to admit he was pretty excited to be on the road in a bus rather than cramped in the van.

The sound of his younger bandmates snapped him back to reality.

“Dude, you’re like four feet tall, you do not need the top bunk! You’re gonna fuckin’ fly out of it every time we make a turn!” Mikey’s voice was bordering the line of pissed off, but Frank clearly did not seem to care.

“Your lanky ass would barely fit up there anyways! And I’m not four feet tall, asshole!” Frank’s tone indicated he was definitely trying to get a rise out of Mikey, not actually planning on taking the top bunk.

Ray tried to hide his laugh as Mikey looked at him for help. He raised his hands in an innocent manner before reaching down to grab his bag. It seemed like while the other two were bickering, Gerard had managed to settle into his own bunk without either of them noticing. Ray looked and saw that there were twelve bunks total. Gerard had picked the last middle bunk on the right, while Frank and Mikey were fighting over the first top bunk to his left.

Frank was laughing as Mikey grew more aggravated before grabbing his bag and throwing it onto the middle bunk behind him. Mikey gave him a shove before throwing his stuff into the top bunk, which Ray had no doubt in his mind wouldn’t last long. He pushed past the two, making his way to the bunk across from Gerard’s. He pulled the curtain back and threw. his bag down to at least unpack his essentials. He put a few books in the cubbyhole along the bunk wall, along with his CD player, before moving towards the back. room to put his guitar up when Frank had put his.

He let out a yawn, stretching almost dramatically, as he made his way back to his bunk.

“You could probably get a few more hours of sleep if you wanted. I can wrangle those two into loading up whatever we got left.”

Ray jumped slightly as Gerard spoke softly behind him. He honestly thought the man went back to bed himself. He turned quickly to face him, his blanket now discarded as it fell to the floor.

“It’s alright, man. I wouldn’t—” a yawn escaped him. “I wouldn’t want you guys to do all that by yourselves. I don’t mind.” He felt his cheeks burn as yet another yawn escaped him. He’d barely slept the night before, but he didn’t seem fortunate enough to get the random surge of energy like Frank did.

“It’s really alright, dude. I’m sure they won’t mind, plus it might help Frankie get some sleep cause lord knows if he got any the night before.” Gerard tilted his head as Frank seemed to be bouncing off the walls as he unpacked everything he could as fast as possible.

Ray followed his gaze, pausing as he thought it over. Not helping this one time wouldn’t be that bad, right? He’d at least be able to feel somewhat rested before they got to their first stop. He shrugged, turning back to meet Gerard’s gaze.

“As long as you come get me if you need help, got it?” Ray said as he ran a hand over his face.

Gerard raised his hand in a mock salute. “You got it, boss.” He said with a smirk, giving Ray’s shoulder a pat. “Get some rest, alright?” his tone leaking the teasing one it held before.

“Will do.” Ray replied, immediately moving to crawl into the bunk.

It was a little cramped, but it was way better than sleeping against the van window. He heard Gerard telling the two to help load up as he pulled the curtain shut, letting the familiar sounds of Mikey's and Frank's protests lure him to sleep.

**********

He woke up with a groan. He brought a hand up, rubbing the remainders of sleep from his eyes as he stretched (well, as much as he could in the bunk), letting out a small yawn. He pulled the curtain back and peeked out the side to see the rest of the guys lounging in the front area with a shitty horror flick on.

Stumbling out of the bunk, blanket wrapped firmly around him, he made his way to the front area. Frank was half asleep on the smaller sofa, Mikey was drinking a cup of coffee in the booth attached to it, and Gerard was perched on the sofa across from the two. He had an abandoned sketchbook. in hand as his focus was on the TV.

Ray grabbed a water bottle off of the small counter and made himself comfortable on the couch next to him. He leaned over to Gerard.

“What are we watchin’?” Ray whispered, his eyes flickering to Gerard before going back to the screen, trying to figure out what it could be.

“Something Frank said we had to check out, though he’s been falling asleep since we put it on, so I’m not really sure.” He whispered in response. Gerard flushed slightly, startled by Ray’s presence. He was too invested in the movie that he hadn’t heard him.

Ray let out a hum of agreement. He shrugged before leaning back over in his seat. “This looks awful, dude.” Ray gave Gerard a pointed look. “Like, not even good awful, like this just is bad.”

Gerard tried to hide the laugh that was bubbling out of him as Frank gave the two a pointed look as if he hadn’t been falling asleep during the whole thing. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Ray give him a smile as he shook his head. They waited until Frank fell asleep once again before making any comments on the movie.

It only took ten minutes for that to happen. The tornado of a man was knocked out, mouth open, letting out loud snores. Ray and Gerard shared a look before diving into fit hushed laughter. After Mikey glanced at the pair, letting out a dramatic sigh, they couldn’t help the loud laughter that bubbled out of them. Ray was doubled over clutching at his stomach, and Gerard had his head thrown back, wiping tears from his eyes.

Though the pair couldn’t see it, Mikey was wearing a knowing smile as he watched the laughter evolve. He let out a quiet chuckle himself, shaking his head before the expression switched back to the careless, not quite stoic but almost, look. It couldn’t have been more than five minutes, but the way the pair were clutching their stomachs and wiping tears from their eyes, you would’ve thought they’d been laughing for hours.

After a while they grew quiet. Ray decided to finally pay attention to the movie, though Gerard made it a bit hard as he whispered obscure facts about the film every few minutes. Ray didn’t mind though. In that moment he thought he would watch any shitty film Frank put on if it meant Gerard would lean over, a little closer than necessary, and talk to him through hushed whispers. Ray felt his cheeks flush, and he tried to shake the thought from his mind, honestly caught off guard that he thought about Gerard in that way at all.

He turned his focus back to the small TV screen protruding from the wall, doing along whenever Gerard would inevitably lean over. He couldn’t figure out why Frank liked this movie so much. Truly it was just a shitty, low budget horror flick that had barely any plot and a copious amount of fake blood.

As the film ended, he turned to see Mikey had headed to his bunk, Frank was still passed out on the couch opposite to him, his legs curled in close to his chest trying to stay warm, and to his left, Gerard had also fallen asleep. His head was resting on Ray’s shoulder, his hair barely falling in front of his eyes, his mouth open letting out the softest of snores. He must’ve been too invested in the movie to realize it happened. He panicked slightly as he shifted slightly, causing Gerard to let out a disgruntled noise. His body stilled as Gerard suddenly leaned. closer, his head moving to rest in the crook of Ray’s neck, and his arms coming to rest gently in his middle.

When Gerard was asleep at a normal hour, it was like a miracle, to be frank. His insomnia seemed to be getting worse. increasingly worse as the interviews became more frequent,the video shoots, the unreliable set times, it was just easier for his brain if he only. He slept an hour or so a night to make sure he was on time to everything.

That brought Ray to his current predicament: let Gerard stay sleeping against his side even though his arm was asleep from being in an odd position for so long and his legs were cramping, or try to gently wake him up to take him to his respective bunk.

Ray chose the first option as his muscles were protesting the decision. He tried to ease the numbness in his arm by moving it to rest on the edge of the sofa behind him, but the action just made Gerard slump against him more. Gerard’s head rested against Ray’s chest, his arms now gently draped across his waist.

Ray’s cheeks felt like they were on fire. His thoughts drifted as he looked down at Gerard’s sleeping form. He looks so peaceful. The permanent crease between his brows has disappeared, his jaw unclenched, and he looks completely at ease. His hair fell in front of his eyes, and Ray couldn’t help but bring his hand up to tuck it behind his ear. He let his hand softly rest against his cheek for a moment, his heart fluttering as Gerard leaned into it.

He shook the thoughts away, bringing his hand back to rest on his leg. He looked to his left to see a discarded book and decided if. He was stuck here (by his own doing, by the way), so he might as well do something.

He picked it up, opening to the first page, only making it a few lines in before sleep took him under.

*******

A few hours later, Mikey woke with a groan. When he left the bunk area, he noticed the pair. Ray was in what looked like maybe the most uncomfortable position ever to sleep in, as his arm was behind his head. His legs were half off the ground, a book in his hand was about to fall, he was slightly leaning over towards the arm of the sofa, and Gerard was tucked into his side.

The snowfall seemed to be never-ending, as always in Jersey. It was the first snowstorm of the year, and it was not holding back. The frigid air nipped at your cheeks as you and Mikey walked towards the door, his glasses fogging up with every breath.

“Shit!” Mikey cried, laughing as he slipped on a patch of ice in the driveway.

“Jesus, Mikes, be careful!” you said through a fit of giggles. You shook your head as you caught up to him.

He unlocked the door, letting out a groan as the warm air of the apartment hit him. You hastily closed the door behind you, not forgetting to lock it, before shrugging your coat off to hang on the rack.

He followed suit, hanging up his scarf as well, before throwing his gloves somewhere on the floor. You shook your head before making your way towards the couch.

If you had to describe his apartment, you would say it was very homey.

There was a large bookshelf covering the whole wall towards the left of the door filled with books, figures, comics, you name it. The TV sat right in the center of it, with DVDs on the surrounding shelves.

There were movie posters hung on the wall to the right, all in frames lined up perfectly with each other. The kitchen was open, with a small island in the center, his beloved coffee machine having its own counter next to his obscure mug collection.

The lighting was warm but not too bright. He had a few comics strung across the coffee table, a dirty mug, and a few other random things. It had rings in it from previous early mornings when he needed the extra caffeine.

You sat on the couch with a sigh, pulling the blanket off the back to wrap yourself up in. You curled into the arm of the couch, making yourself comfortable.

“Making coffee, you want some?” he called out.

“Yeah! Two sugars, please!” You replied. A smile tugged at your lips as you settled in.

“As if I would forget!”

You could practically hear the smirk in his voice. You rolled your eyes before your phone chimed.

Frank: Don’t forget to leave room for Jesus. ;)

You chuckled quietly to yourself before replying.

wouldn’t dream of it ;)

You locked your phone, tossing it on the table as Mikey walked in. He must’ve changed while you made yourself comfortable. He was in a pair of sweats and a Motörhead shirt that was probably a hand-me-down from Gerard. Your cheeks flushed before he reached out to hand you your coffee in the mug he claimed as yours. It was some cheesy vampire mug he’d found at a thrift store a couple years back that reminded him of you.

“Two sugars! Didn’t forget!” He smiled as he sat down next to you, taking a sip of his own.

“Thanks, Mikey,” you said softly.

He turned to face you. His hair was a mess from the hat he’d been wearing earlier, no longer being held under his glasses. You smiled before bringing a hand up to ruffle it.

“Your hair is a mess, dude. Like a total wreck,” you teased.

He playfully swatted your hand away, trying to smooth the untamed hair down. After realizing it was a lost cause, he gave up. He brought his legs to his chest, leaning back against the couch. He glanced over at you.

“What do you want to do? Play a board game? Watch a movie?”

You let out a small hum as you thought about the choices. You could still feel his eyes on you. You brought a hand up to your chin as if you were in deep thought.

“Come onnnnnn, y/n! It can’t be that hard of a choice.”

You glanced over before replying in a teasing tone.

“Of course it’s not, Mikey. With the amount of movies you have, how could I not choose a movie?”

He rolled his eyes before walking over to his obscene amount of DVDs. You followed, keeping the blanket wrapped tightly around yourself. You crouched down next to him, searching for your first movie choice.

“A-ha!” Mikey exclaimed. He turned towards you, shoving the DVD case in front of you.

“Jaws?”

“Yes, dude! You can’t be mad at a classic!”

“Only if we watch Dawn of the Dead after,” you replied. A soft smile pulled at your lips, knowing it was his favorite and yours too.

“Deal!” He quickly moved to put the movie on as you walked back over to the couch. You stopped before sitting down completely.

“Popcorn?” you asked.

“Yeah! I can make us some!”

“No, don't worry about it. You got the coffee; I can make us some popcorn.”

You headed towards the kitchen. Reaching in the cabinet for the popcorn he seemed to always keep on the top shelf, popping it in the microwave. You looked around, opening and closing cabinets before you found the designated popcorn bowl. It was one of those cheesy plastic Halloween candy bowls, but it was the perfect size for a giant bowl of popcorn on movie nights.

By the time you had the popcorn ready, Mikey had made himself comfortable on the couch. His legs stretched out in front of him on top of the coffee table (mindful of his comics and your mug, of course), and a blanket draped around him. He smiled at you as you walked in and pressed play. You sat next to him, handing him the popcorn before taking a sip of your coffee.

“Let the marathon begin!” Mikey cheered before grabbing a handful of popcorn.

You smiled at him as the opening credits began rolling. You couldn’t lie to yourself; the movie was a staple, and the soundtrack was iconic in the realm of movie soundtracks. You glanced over to him and felt your heart stutter as he seemed so comfortable and invested in the film, even if he’d seen it a hundred times.

In a quick turn of his head, he met your eyes. You turned away quickly, your cheeks flushed, and you felt your mouth go dry. You took a sip of your coffee, trying to will the blush away. Out of the corner of your eye, you could see him smirk.

***********

After Jaws was Dawn of the Dead, and after that it was some shitty horror film Mikey claimed to be the best, though you were having a hard time believing it was anything but a good laugh. You could see how it could’ve gone, but with the low budget it was just kind of funny. You always did have a soft spot for shitty low-budget horror flicks, though.

The popcorn bowl sat empty on the table along with your mugs. Mikey had curled up, well, as best as he could with his lanky legs, on the couch at some point, and there was barely an inch between the two of you.

You hid yet another yawn as you fought off sleep for a moment longer. It had to have been two in the morning at this point, but you didn’t want the day to end. At some point, though, your body decided it was time to sleep, and you couldn’t fight it anymore.

“y/n?” Mikey murmured.

He glanced over to see your head resting against his chest, and your body had slumped against his own. He smiled before bringing his arm to wrap around you, pulling you flush against him. You let out a hum in your sleep as you cuddled closer to him, bringing your arms up to wrap around his chest. He shook his head lightly.