Gerard's first mistake was telling Geoff Rickly that he had started a band. Geoff had become quite successful over the last few years - Thursday had two albums and a record deal - so maybe Gerard should have known better, but when they met up for coffee one morning, he off-handedly mentioned his new rock band, not expecting anything to come of it.

"That's amazing!" Geoff exclaimed. "Wait a second, I've got a great idea. You should play a show sometime. It could be in my basement. I'll spread the word that you're playing, and I bet lots of people will come just to see you. It's going to be so much fun."

"Geoff, I don't know about this," Gerard said.

"What's the problem?"

"We've only written, like, three songs."

"So? You can play those three songs. It'll be great."

"We don't have a bassist."

"You can play without a bassist."

"This really isn't a good idea," Gerard said. "Everyone's going to hate us."

"Come on, Gerard. If you're going to be a real band, you'll have to play at some point, right?" Geoff said.

He had a point. Gerard stared into the bottom of his now empty coffee cup and then said, "I guess so, but we need to practice more first."

"Will you be ready by next Friday?" Geoff asked.

"Can we wait until the Friday after that at least?" Gerard said, trying his best to delay the inevitable.

"Yeah, that's fine," Geoff said. "I can't wait to hear you guys. I can already tell that you're going to change the world...or at the very least, you'll put on a really good show in my basement."

Gerard laughed. "Thanks, Geoff," he said.

"So who else is in your band?"

"Just Ray and Matt."

"That's so cool. I always thought that Ray was a really good guitarist."

"That's why I asked him to join," Gerard said. He was proud of his little group, although he was still trying to figure out how exactly they would put on a live show without a bassist.

"What's your band called anyways?" Geoff asked.

"I don't know," Gerard said. "We haven't thought about that yet."

"Oh okay," Geoff said.

"Enough about me," Gerard said. "Tell me about Thursday. You guys are signed to Victory now, right?" He'd heard the news from Mikey, who, unlike Gerard, actually paid some attention to the local music scene.

Geoff groaned. "Don't get me started," he said. He went on a long rant about his new record label, and Gerard tried his best to listen, but his mind was wandering again. He had some new ideas for songs, and he decided that he would call Matt and Ray after he got home. They needed more songs, they needed a bassist, but most of all, they desperately needed to practice before they stepped onstage for the first time.

Gerard's second mistake was getting drunk out of his mind right before the show started. While Ray and Matt set up their equipment, Gerard tried his best to calm his nerves. It was too late to back out now, to tell his bandmates and his friends that he just couldn't do it, so he drowned his sorrows, his fear, and his pain, until he couldn't feel a thing. When Ray came back, he asked Gerard if he was okay.

"I'm fine," he said, but the words came out slurred. "Let's go. Let's play the damn show already."

Ray and Matt exchanged a glance, unsure if they should go on, but Geoff was already at the microphone, introducing the band. "And now, get ready for...I Don't Know, We Haven't Thought About That Yet!"

"Does he actually think that's our band name?" Matt whispered to his band mates.

"It's what he put on the posters that he hung up around town," Ray said. "We really need a better name if we're going to keep doing this."

Nevertheless, the three band members walked onstage as the crowd cheered. Gerard closed his eyes, pretending that all of the people in front of him weren't there. In his mind, he was alone. There were no shows, no speakers, no sweaty, crowded basements, no people who knew people who were flying straight. There was nothing but the world inside Gerard's head. He took a deep breath, and when he heard Matt pounding on the drums and the roar of Ray's guitar, he gripped the microphone, opened his mouth, and sang.

He poured everything he had into that song. He hit every high and every low. He screamed and cursed, but he knew when to pull back too, to make the crowd listen a little bit closer. When the guitar solo kicked in, he awkwardly attempted to dance. He couldn't care less what anyone thought of him. He was lost in the music.

As the song came to an end, he struck a violent pose, and the crowd burst into applause. It wasn't the polite applause that he sometimes heard at local shows either. It was genuine, enthusiastic, and thunderingly loud. Gerard smiled: this was why he had started a band. This was how he would make a difference in this twisted, ugly, mixed-up world.

Gerard's third mistake was looking out into the crowd. It was smaller than he had thought, and he recognized almost every face. There was Mikey, of course, skipping class to come to his brother's show. Ray's brothers were there too, and so was Matt's family. Geoff had talked his bandmates and some of his friends into coming, and there were a few people that Gerard had worked with at Cartoon Network. It wasn't a bad turnout for a basement show, but that didn't change the fact that nobody had come to see Gerard, Ray, and Matt except for their friends and relatives.

There was one exception. There was a man in his early twenties with dyed black hair and more tattoos than Gerard could count standing near the stage. He was jumping around like crazy, shoving past all of the taller people in front him to get a better view of the band. Gerard had no idea who he was, but he wished he did, if only because he was one of the most beautiful people he had ever seen. He locked eyes with the tattooed man for just a moment, and he thought that his heart might explode. Maybe getting a glimpse of all the people who had come to his show wasn't such a bad idea after all.

"Hey Gerard, maybe we should move on to the next song?" Ray said.

"Yeah, I guess so," Gerard said as he tore his eyes away from the cute guy in the crowd. "This next one is called...wait, what did we decide to call this one?"

"Knives/Sorrow, I think," Ray said.

"I thought it was Bring More Knives," Matt chimed in.

"Whatever," Gerard said. "We don't have a name for this song yet, but you guys will fucking love it."

Ray played the first few chords of the song, whatever it was called, and the show went on. Gerard sang and screamed his heart out, and when it all became too much, he focused on the tattooed man. He was fascinated by how someone so beautiful could exist in this world. He didn't think it was possible, and yet here he was, jumping to the beat of the music. By the time Gerard got to the last chorus, the tattooed man was singing his words back to him. Gerard smiled, and he wished that the moment could last forever.

They played the rest of the set, and after it was all over, when they were packing up their equipment, Ray said to the rest of the band, "You know, I was a little worried at first, but that went really well."

"It really did, but the night is still young," Matt said. "I heard there's a party at Audrey's house. Ray, Gerard, are you coming?"

Gerard shook his head. The alcohol was starting to wear off, and his head was pounding. Right now, he just wanted to go home and crash on the couch.

"Let's just call it a night," Ray said.

"Suit yourself," Matt said. He walked away, and while Ray packed up his guitar, Gerard wandered around the basement. It was almost empty now, and no matter how hard he looked, the tattooed man was nowhere to be found. He had probably left with everyone else after the show was over. However, Gerard did run into Geoff again.

"Gerard!" Geoff exclaimed. "You killed it out there!"

"Thanks," he said.

"Your songs were great, and I had no idea that you could sing like that," Geoff said. "I talked to Tom, and he said the exact same thing. You guys are incredible."

"Thank you, Geoff," Gerard said, not quite knowing how to respond to all of this praise.

"You're welcome," Geoff said. "I should have promoted the show better though. I totally would have gotten more people to come if Audrey Metzler wasn't throwing a party on the same night..."

All of a sudden, Gerard asked the question that he had wanted to ask all night. "I saw there was this guy with dyed black hair and a whole bunch of tattoos in the crowd. Who was he?"

"Oh, that's just the guy from Pencey Prep," Geoff said.

"Pencey Prep?" Gerard repeated. He'd heard that name before.

"Yeah, his name is Frank Oreo or something like that?" Geoff said. "No wait, that doesn't sound right. Frank Lero? I don't know. It's definitely Frank Something."

Gerard wanted to say something, but then Geoff kept right on talking.

"I've seen him at basement shows sometimes. I didn't invite him or anything. He probably just saw the posters that I put up and wanted to check out your music." Geoff paused and then asked, "Why did you want to know?"

"No reason," Gerard said.

"Okay," Geoff said. "Do you guys want to play here again next week? I'd love to have you back."

Gerard thought about it for a moment. If there was any chance that he might see Frank again, then he knew that he had to come back. "Yeah, that would be great," he told Geoff.

"Awesome," Geoff said. "I'll see you soon."

Gerard walked upstairs, and as he headed home, he thought back to that weird dream that he'd had as a teenager. It was almost a decade ago now, but he still remembered it all like it had happened yesterday. Now he knew who Frank was, and he smiled every time he thought about him standing in the crowd, desperately trying to get just a little bit closer to the band. Maybe the fact that he shared a name with the guy that the mysterious man had mentioned was just a strange coincidence, but he liked to think that it was something more than that.

When Gerard got home, his head was throbbing, but his mind was moving at the speed of light. Mostly, he regretted not getting a chance to actually talk to Frank. Maybe he would have some answers. Maybe he was friends with the mysterious man, and he could give Gerard some sort of explanation.

Even if Frank didn't know anything about Gerard's dream, he still wanted to know more. Geoff hadn't told him much, but what he had said was intriguing. Frank was probably busy with his own band, but he had still taken the time to come to Geoff Rickly's basement and see a brand new artist that nobody had ever heard of. Already, Gerard loved that about him.

As he stared up at the ceiling, he promised himself that this would be more than just another water-cooler romance. Next time he saw Frank, he'd strike up a conversation. It couldn't be that hard, right?

Gerard closed his eyes, and the last thing he saw before he fell asleep was Frank's face. He may have made a few mistakes that night, but at least something good had come from them.