The Jetset Life is Gonna Kill You 8/9/06-8/12/06

Wednesday morning, Andie visited her doctor to have the last of her stitches removed. She couldn't believe it had been nearly a month since her accident. She was glad to move on. Besides, except for her still bruised ribs and a couple of scars, she felt like her old self again.

That afternoon, the guys had their photo shoot and interview. The process wasn't anything new to them, but they were still glad to be back in the spotlight again. They were excited about promoting the new album they'd all worked so hard on.

This day wouldn't be anything new to Andie either. The guys all decided they wanted to use the same look she'd given them for "The Black Parade" video shoot. So she already knew what to expect she would be doing.

Afterwards, the guys went back to their hotel and Gerard and Andie back to her apartment. Everyone needed to be well rested and prepared for tomorrow. For Thursday, they would leave for Japan.


The next morning, everyone packed up and met at LAX for their flight to Tokyo. They would be playing in the Summer Sonic festival there on Saturday. But the time difference between North America and Asia would mean that when they arrived in Tokyo, it would already be Friday evening.

**SOUNDTRACK: "STARLIGHT" BY MUSE**

Andie settled into her seat on the big jet and grinned over at Gerard.

"HA HA! You look like a little kid who gets to ride the big roller coaster at a park!" He laughed.

"Stop making fun of me! Unlike all of you, I've never been to Japan. I'm gonna pee my pants. Where's the bathroom?" Andie joked.

"Ugh...you don't wanna use the bathroom on a plane if you can avoid it...EVER. Trust me." Gerard grimaced.

"I was kidding!" Andie leaned her head against his. "So tell me what it was like when you were there."

"Well, actually, I don't remember a whole lot..." Gerard had never told her about how bad it was when he was drinking and medicated.

"What?" Andie thought aloud. "Oh because you guys were so busy? You didn't get to do much?"

"Not exactly..." Gerard tried to find the right words. "The last time we were here, it was two years ago. I was pretty much at rock bottom with the drug and alcohol abuse. I don't remember a whole lot because I was so out of my mind at that time. And man, nobody wanted to be around me unless they were just as into it as I was. I was terrible. I didn't handle myself the way I should have."

Andie listened as he told her about some of the things that happened with him and the band back then. She laid her head on his shoulder and held his hand, studying it as he spoke.

"That makes me so sad, Gerard," she said when he had finished.

"Why does that make you sad?" he asked, playing with her fingers in his. "I don't want you to feel bad for me. I know what I did and I had to overcome it."

"Because," she started as she sat up to look at him. "I look at you now, and this is the person that I've come to love very dearly. You must have grown as a person so much since then. Because I can't even imagine you being any other way. And I know, in my heart, that this is who you really are. You must have had so much to hide behind then, to make yourself want to escape everything. So it just makes me sad that you had to go through that and you couldn't be yourself all along."

"Hmm..." Gerard considered what she said. He hadn't expected that from her. She always had this unique perspective on things and he loved that about her. "So...if I'd have met you back then, would I have had a chance?"

"Ha Ha Ha!" Andie laughed. "Honestly?"

Gerard grinned and nodded.

"Not a chance," Andie grinned back at him.

"That's good," Gerard said seriously. "I wouldn't want you to have known that person anyway. You were right, that wasn't me. Fuck, I don't know who that guy was."


Their flight arrived in Toyko and they rode a train directly to their hotel where they were, unfortunately, all beat from the long flight. But everyone was restless enough to end up hanging out in Gerard and Andie's room. They ordered room service, played video games, and watched a movie before they finally called it a night.

In bed that night, Andie snuggled up next to Gerard.

"Hey, do you think we'll have time to see anything in Tokyo tomorrow?" she spoke softly into his bare chest.

"I dunno. Probably, if we get up early enough. We have to do soundcheck, then a couple of interviews before the show. I think we have to be there at one or two. I dunno. I'm still fucked up on the time here..."

"Hmm..."

"What? C'mon... Do you want to see something? What'd you have in mind?"

"Well...I kinda hoped maybe we could see the Tokyo Tower...but if we can't it's okay! I mean, I'm just glad I got to come here at all."

"I'll see what I can do about that..."


The next day, they did wake up early, to Brian calling them. He wanted to tell Gerard he was giving a statement about the shows they cancelled in San Diego. He told Gerard about the rumors that were everywhere saying the guys had been in a car accident or a plane crash. So he was going to set the record straight and asked Gerard if he wanted to add anything to the statement.

Since they were up early enough, Gerard and Andie did get to see the Tokyo Tower, and it only took a few hours. The huge structure was constructed in a similar design tot he Eiffel Tower, only slightly higher. The view of Tokyo was breathtaking! Both Andie and Gerard were glad they'd taken the opportunity to go together.

They got back in time for the guys' soundcheck and went to their trailer for Andie to do their hair and makeup. It was so hot that day, that they were glad to get into the air conditioned trailer to get ready. As soon as they were finished, the guys did a couple of interviews. Then went back to the trailer until they would be moved behind the stage just before they went on.

Andie stayed with them as long as she could, but Brian was going to take her out to watch the show, as it would be the first time she'd ever see them perform live. She noticed they all seemed a little...jittery? No...they were just pumped up. They reminded her of her mom's Chihuahua, Pinky, when he knew he was going outside and just waiting for the signal!

Brian relayed the message to the guys that they had twenty minutes until they would need to be behind the stage. He told Andie that he'd better get her out there now.

Gerard pulled her close and kissed her lips.

She searched his eyes and smiled at him. "Does this feel weird to you, too?"

He grinned. "Yeah, it does...a little."

Gerard turned his head towards Brian. "Hey Brian! Make sure she's close, okay?"

He turned back to Andie and said, "I wanna be able to see you."

"Andie...we need to go..." Brian said as he walked back over to them.

"Have fun!" She grinned again and gave him a quick kiss before she headed off with Brian. "And be careful!" She grinned at Frank.

"What? Why does everyone always look at me?!" Frank defended himself.

Andie wished them all good luck and took off with Brian.

Brian and Andie blended in with the crowd and she got to enjoy the guys' performance. It was better than she had expected, even with Bob's and Gerard's injuries. It didn't take long for Gerard to find her and his eyes grew wild when he first made eye contact with her. She thought to herself how strange this was that she'd never seen this part of his life, yet they were so close now.

She had to laugh at Gerard when he would look at her and sing the most fucked up and dimented lyric with that mischievious grin on his face. Mikey stayed pretty much behind his brother and still had that sweet, shy demeaner he had in person. Frank and Ray were just playing these killer guitar licks. Ray would bang his head to his riffs while Frank went crazy, jumping around the stage. And poor Bob, with his leg all bandaged up, he was back there giving his all like it was nothing.

Andie was so glad she'd come. It was a totally different performance than the video shoots. When these guys had a crowd in front of them, it was easy to see why they had such a huge fanbase. It's like a lightswitch turns on in them. Seeing them interact with the crowd, Andie marvelled in how wonderfully talented her friends were. And the best part about them being in this business, was that they truly enjoyed it. They lived for this shit. It was all they knew.

After the guys' performance, there wouldn't be any hanging out with the other bands or parties to go to. Everyone went back to the hotel and got showered and packed. Andie and Gerard took a nice hot bubble bath together in the big tub in their room. But time was short and soon everyone was off to the Tokyo airport to head back to the states. They would arrive on the East Coast in several hours and the guys were to perform in Charlotte, North Carolina Sunday night.

Gerard and Andie fell asleep, leaning on each other, on the long flight back to the U.S.