The cool metal bit into his wrists no longer. He stood painfully straight, eyes on the only person that mattered. He couldn’t hear anyone else. The judge’s voice didn’t cut through him as she read the sentence. His brown eyes bore through her to no avail. The feeling of shame and regret were foreign to him as were a great many things now. The tabloids were having a field day with the current developments of the case against the famed lead guitarist of Avenged Sevenfold. The sound of the gavel knocked him out of his stupor and he stood there with no intent to move. A long arm draped itself around his shoulders and urged him out of the courtroom slowly. Jimmy said nothing.

Three years probation and successful completion of a batterer’s program along with countless hours of community service. That was the punishment to fit his crime. He was to get nowhere near Michelle and had to brace himself for a civil suit that was sure to follow. Val wanted nothing to do with Brian at the moment and it also strained things with Matt. Zacky was the last thing on his mind. In fact, it seemed as if no thoughts formed. He was only breathing, living because had not yet taken his final breath. Jimmy shielded him from the cameras, the shrieking of the tabloid reporters. A few law enforcement officials helped break through the crowd and escorted them to their SUV. The engine roared to life as they both slid into the backseat, Jimmy shutting the door behind them.

Johnny flashed them a quick glance before putting the car in drive and accelerating. Johnny and Jimmy were the only two who he had seen in these past months. Everyone seemed to be intimidated by Brian’s vapid demeanor and empty stares. Johnny would sometimes disappear for a few days, but always showed up. Jimmy hadn’t stepped foot in his own house in that amount of time. The buildings flashed before his eyes as he stared out the window. The silence engulfed them completely. Not even Johnny dared to turn on the stereo and sing in his usual off-key screech lest Brian reach up and throttle him as he had done so many times before. His eyes were glued to the road.

In a split second, laughter pierced the silence. Jimmy’s eyes widened as he realized for once the maniacal fit of laughter wasn’t emanating from him. He turned to look at Brian and couldn’t help but smile as he recognized that spark of life hadn’t been completely extinguished from him after all, no matter how mad Brian may have seemed at the current moment. Johnny keep glancing at them through the rear view mirror, concern written all over his face.

“I-I’m free... Fuckin’--” he breathed in between laughs. “I fuckin’ got away with it. I’m free!”

Brian’s eyes gleamed with excitement and something else Jimmy couldn’t quite put a name to, but he quickly brushed that aside. The power window rolled down and Brian stuck his body out, arms resting on top of the roof. He let the wind whip at his face as he continued to laugh. The muscles were stretched to the max as his smile grew.

The more he laughed, the less weight he felt was on his shoulders. He laughed until the muscles in his abdomen stung with every intake of breath. He slid into the car again and slumped in his seat. He perched his feet on the center console in between the front seats and hooked both hands behind the nape of his neck. The trademark easy smirk soon fell into place. Jimmy’s laugh died down to a chuckle and he clasped his friend’s shoulder, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

“Tell you the truth... I never really liked ‘Chelle to begin with,” he stated in a sober tone.

“Yeah, me either!” Johnny piped in, eager to be part of the group.

Brian scoffed and kicked Johnny on the shoulder with all the might he could muster. The SUV swerved onto the opposite side of the road, almost colliding with oncoming traffic. After the initial shock, they all burst into raucous laughter once again. Brian's sides burned immensely, but he couldn’t stop from laughing. It was as if something was broken inside of him, but for once it didn’t matter. Nothing mattered. He didn’t want to find out what was wrong. Because, in truth, it terrified him right down to the very core.

“Liquid lunch, dinner, and midnight snack, boys,” he announced. “We’re getting beyond fucked up tonight.”

Jimmy roared his approval and reached up to smack Johnny across the head. Johnny muttered under his breath and made a sharp turn onto PCH.

“I assume you got the shit, Slimbob?” Brian asked in an easy drawl.

Jimmy reached into his pocket and pulled out a baggie with small white tablets. He shook it as he held it in front of his face.

“Always can count on you, Sullivan...” he boasted before turning his attention to Johnny. “Cut the granny shit out, Christ. This ain’t Driving Miss Daisy!”

With that, Johnny put the pedal to the floor and they swerved in and out of traffic; their destination still unknown.

Notes

---

A lot of time has lapsed since we last saw Brian! Please rate, comment, and subscribe! Hope you enjoy. :) Sound off in the comments. I'd love to know what you think about Brian's state of mind!

Be sure to check out my new story here! Working with my long-time friend Mariah. It will be full of surprises! :DD