I aged up Frank and Gerard to 18 years old because I felt more comfortable that way, I realized I didn't have to stay true to the OG book on that part. Welcome back!

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"I think I might've inhaled you, I could feel you behind my eyes. You've gotten into my bloodstream, I could feel you floating in me." 

— 'Bloodstream', Stateless.

Frank was determined to not give any sort of clue that internally, he was greatly bothered. To say he was wounded would be admitting he had softened at first, let down a portion of his armor to make himself vulnerable, but his pride wouldn't allow him to admit it. Frank would instead pretend that the thing caused him great unease over the weekend had never taken a toll at him at all. It was a lousy thing to be so affected by a person who didn't deserve a single sliver of his friendship or patience, not anymore.

In the beginning, Frank tried to justify Gerard's absence with something else. A family emergency, a sudden case of the flu, receiving an unexpected grounding from a displeased mother. Anything could've went, but Frank had a strong gut feeling that it wasn't any of the above, nor was it another acceptable excuse. Gerard evaded the party on purpose despite promising Frank who entrusted him enough to be faithful to his word. It was quite the opposite, which Frank should've expected before putting his trust into anybody who treated him with little respect in the past. A person couldn't drastically change overnight, and perhaps Frank was a total fool for ever believing something in Gerard's heart shifted.

Frank drifted through the school and went about his day, being a bit too aloof and casual. His friends, minus Frances who coincidentally said she had a huge project to complete in the computer lab whenever she was given free time, thought his behavior was a bit off, and repeatedly asked if he was feeling alright. He brushed off their concerns and used a tough argument with his mother over breaking curfew as a reasonable excuse for his edgy behavior, and though they didn't seem to latch onto the bait while knowing Gerard had stood him up two nights prior, they dismissed the topic for Frank's own sake. Frank was grateful that they no longer addressed it or else he felt he may combust from frustration. 

One could assume it was a defense mechanism concealing the feeling of betrayal. Frank thought it was too much of an exaggerated term, but there was no simpler way to summarize it when he struggled to place his trust in someone he was wary about to begin with. He questioned Gerard's intentions more than ever after being left behind and decided it wasn't worth the level of stress. Curiosity and strange auras be damned, Frank had nothing left to give and he couldn't magically conjure up another ounce of trust; Gerard blew his chances. He couldn't pay his entire mind to infuriating enigmas when he had better things to concern himself with; school, friendships, balancing parental relationships, and doing his best to survive the prison that was high school. Just like an ordinary eighteen year old. 

His mind's focus just wasn't that simple. Frank was bombarded by the emotions of others and he constantly analyzed his surroundings to connect with them. He concerned over the weather and struggled to keep his head above water some days, constantly reflecting on the past and zeroing in on the flaws each of his days brought him more than the blessings he should've counted. He wished he could be more ordinary; constantly thinking about sex and dreading homework and concerning himself with socialization the way an average teenage boy was wired. Frank accepted the way he differentiated from the rest, leaving him so weary of the life laid ahead of him, but he at least owed himself attempts to act normal if his appearance was that of a flesh and blood person trudging through the most mundane things life could offer. 

But, on the basis of pretending there was nothing extraordinary about himself, Frank came to the decision that plenty of people would likely confront someone who treated them poorly, all anxiousness and fear of upsetting others aside. Confrontation was exactly what was needed in his situation, and above all things, it would lend him a great deal of satisfaction to see the look on Gerard's face when he stomped in his direction, uncaring who would bear witness to it. 

After stewing in pent up frustration, Frank waited for each of his despairingly slow classes to trickle by until, at long last, lunch hour struck and temporarily released students from their academic responsibilities. Instead of scurrying through the light showers of rain towards his friends, Frank decided to take a different route on his way to the cafeteria in case one of them attempted to coax him out of his plan. He'd stubbornly shoot down their efforts regardless, but he didn't want lingering regret in the end and guilt for neglecting to consider anyone else's stances over his decision to approach Gerard. 

In the haven of the cafeteria shielding everyone from the drizzle saturating the grounds outside, Frank pushed back his hood while stood behind flocks of people guiding themselves to their seats, spotting his friends entering on the opposite end. Their eyes darted around the place; most likely searching for Frank, though Frances wore an expression of apprehension in comparison to the puzzled expression Adam and Ray sported since they knew Frank wasn't absent. He waited for their heads to turn and their attention to lay elsewhere to slip away from the crowd, scanning everywhere for the Way family. 

When they entered, their celestial aura was difficult not to spot. They may as well exude a ray of golden light engulfing a strange icy exterior separating every one of them from Frank's classmates, a rather befuddling trait since neither of them were related by blood apart from Gerard and Mikey. Frank's eyes narrowed as his gaze slid over every family member straying ahead of Gerard who seemed distant with his pensive expression trained to the floor and the set of his mouth, avoiding the chatter his family engaged in despite their frequent glances towards him inviting him to comment whenever he pleased. Alicia scoffed at his brooding behavior, a scowl curling her lovely mouth. Kristin laid a gentle hand on her arm and chided her for her foul mood, shaking her head once their eyes locked. 

Suddenly, as Frank watched from afar with a clenched jaw, Gerard's eyes darted upward and met Frank's. The wrenching lurch of Frank's heart was a traitorous thing. The tingles spreading over the crown of his head and spilling down his back were acknowledging the impeccable beauty of emerald eyes twirling along the edges of abnormal for the way they glistened with a dangerous glint even if destruction wasn't his intention. Frank understood Gerard as a person whose sharp lashes ran deeper than the outer layer of the skin whenever he struck, leaving a resonating ache during the moments where he meant to make amends, futile attempts. Frank sensed his secrecy from the distance and nearly lost every ounce of his courage to the unsettled guilt brimming out over the icicles guarding Gerard's soul. It was almost mournful, knowing his own betrayal, but Frank learned being undeservingly forgiving was an easy way to continue being manipulated back into someone's hurricane. 

Frank sucked in a deep breath and started stomping in his direction. The way Gerard's eyes widened was comical as Frank approached, flitting towards his family members flocking him, but Frank didn't allow his focus to fall away from the center of most of his current issues. He ignored the passing stares and questioning auras most likely wondering where he stalked off to, followed by the flying sparks of shock as realization sank in. 

Halting in front of Gerard, he did everything within his capabilities to mask the smallest tinge of fear lingering on the outsides of his resolve like an unwanted menace looking to sabotage his fire now that it was thriving. His eyes, locked intently with Gerard's, wouldn't waver. 

"It was really nice figuring out that all of your promises are complete bullshit." Frank spat out first to clarify his reasons for approaching Gerard in case they weren't obvious. His nostrils flared, fists clenched at his sides. 

"Gerard?" Mikey, Gerard's brother, lightly touched his arm, eyes sharp and alert observing Frank. 

"They're not bullshit, Frank. I really wanted to go to the party, giving someone my word is not something I do if I don't intend on following through." Gerard kept his voice at a modulated level to avoid acquiring any more attention than they already had, eyes darting everywhere except for Frank. Frank was infuriated by his averting gaze when he was planted right in front of Gerard, clearly pissed off. His anger hadn't been so consuming until that moment when all of his prior emotions came rushing back from the place he'd buried them to hopefully create some peace between him and the other. 

"Seriously, Gerard, I have a hard time believing that something magically prevented you from coming due to your long history of being a dick to me for no reason." Frank resisted the urge to seize Gerard's chin and turn his face towards him. The penetrating stares of Gerard's family pierced into him, so he didn't dare reach out.

When Gerard did turn his head in Frank's direction, Frank was momentarily staggered by the glint of pain surging through luminous irises, the secondhand effects rushing into Frank at a dizzying pace. For a second, Frank wondered if Gerard took advantage of his gift by wielding a false emotion brought on by thinking of something else to make it seem like he was truly regretful over his actions. 

"It wasn't with ill intent," Gerard spoke so softly that the sound was silk, "You don't have a reason to believe me, I understand. Maybe it's best if we speak privately?" 

"Why? Are you embarrassed? It was more embarrassing for me to tell my friends I invited you just for them to see you stood me up." 

Alicia Way bristled at Frank's venomous tone and stepped forward. Her eyes were dark and glaring daggers into the pit of Frank's soul, eliciting a faint chill from him with the warning swimming in her aura. "I don't know who the hell you think you are, but you're not gonna talk to my brother like that, kid." 

"Alicia, don't. This doesn't concern us." Kristin gently curled a hand around her sister's wrist to draw her back, far calmer than everyone else out of the bunch. 

"It's nothing I don't deserve." Gerard inclined his head in the direction of his siblings without darting his eyes away, noting the way Frank stepped down a notch out of a hint of terror he wouldn't admit, being a target of the blistering heat of Alicia's eyes grown bright with hatred. Frank nearly flinched under it, but he kept his head high instead of shrinking any lower, swallowing hard. 

Frank shouldn't have been so entitled. He never was throughout his entire existence however short it was compared to the years ahead of him, but he felt a sense of entitlement when it came to Gerard raking up a vow to earn a quarter of Frank's trust only to spit it back out, discarding it. Frank couldn't see it any other way despite his first instinct to wonder if something truly held Gerard up. 

"I'm sorry." Gerard's adam's apple bobbed and a frown grazed his perfect lips. "I didn't have a way to reach you and tell you I couldn't go. I would've told you if I had."

At that, Frank admitted he made an error of not exchanging phone numbers in case of any delays or changes in plans. He hadn't thought it through, already stunned half to death that Gerard agreed to accompanying him at all. Frank tightly clenched his jaw and turned away for the first time, huffing quietly. 

"Do you at least have a good reason for leaving me hanging? This was sort of important." Frank didn't go into depth to preserve their privacy since plenty of eyes were drilling into them, eager to tune in on the heated conversation that would likely be another hot start of conversation for the gossip and rumor mill their classmates built. 

Gerard stepped forward and it caused Frank's eyes to flit back to him, ensnared by an imploring gaze making his breath split and tangle in his throat. 

"Please, let's talk about this somewhere else. I'll explain, I just don't feel . . . particularly comfortable telling you in front of everyone." Gerard lightly cleared his throat, glancing over Frank's shoulder and over his own at his rigid siblings watching Frank with different expressions on each of their faces. 

Frank nearly denied Gerard his request simply because he was stubborn and felt terribly spiteful in light of recent events. Yet, his tongue became led in his mouth, pressed against his teeth as he searched the liquid of Gerard's green eyes to explore the sincerity hidden behind him, a beseeching wave of warmth cascading along the glaciers and ebbing away some of the frost to allow an inhabitable environment he yearned for Frank to rest in for the time being. Frank detested how easily drawn in he was, the unfairness of their dynamic, so he reminded himself he'd have control over the entire thing even if he gave in and settled in the shade with Gerard someplace more private. 

Giving out a heavy breath, Frank glanced at Gerard's family quickly, then pivoted to march towards the exit of the cafeteria. He didn't need to instruct Gerard to follow him; the latter caught onto his intentions and began following him in stride without question. Frank shouldered past the door and into the gloom that thankfully took a brief pause in sprinkling the earth with an excessive of rainwater, leaving behind the heavy scent of damp greenery spreading lush at every turn. Frank cautiously avoided any puddles and treaded carefully along the slippery pavements, storming out as viscously as the brewing clouds hovering above his head and finally arriving to a spot nestled between the library and the gym. 

He halted there, arms crossed over his chest, watching in faint surprise to see Gerard hardly had any catching up to do and slowed to a halt at nearly the exact same time as Frank. One would think Frank would've gotten used to Gerard's speed, but it always threw him off guard. 

"Alright. I did what you asked." Frank gestured to their surroundings and privacy. "Now it's your turn to do something for me." 

Gerard sighed silently, his shoulders slumping. Avoiding Frank's gaze, one elegant hand raked through his disheveled dark hair, and for the most evanescent second, the pose reminded Gerard of the intricate carvings of Michelangelo, the grace of his movements and the  marble quality of his flawless physique. Frank shook his instinctive fascination off before it overtook every reason why he stood there in the first place. 

"I want to be your friend, Frank." Gerard started softly. "Despite how I think of myself and how I believe you deserve a far better friend, I mean it when I say I'd like to be part of your life." 

It was a startling vulnerable thing to say and Frank wasn't certain how to react to it. He kept his arms crossed tightly, a line forming between his eyebrows. Well, shit, Frank felt intrusive conjuring up a comment after something like that. 

Gerard continued after a brief moment of silence. "It's pretty ridiculous, the actuality of it. You'd think it's some silly feud, which I suppose it is, but I'd rather not feed the fire." 

"What are you talking about?" Frank's brows drew together in confusion. 

Gerard held Frank's eyes steady. "I — my family and I are non-confrontational people. We try to keep peace with everyone we cross paths with, but there's a specific bunch that aren't the same. If they catch sight of any of us, things turn out sour. I heard one of them was going to be there." 

Frank was struck with recognition. His expression cleared as it dawned on him, recalling the story of mythical tension formed between the self proclaimed witches of Oregon and the Way family, the supposed vampires, though the existence of vampires was far more impossible thing than the existence of witches since Frank knew of a few practices that weren't at all what was shown in the media. 

"You mean the witches?" Frank curled his fingers in air quotes around the final word he spoke. 

Gerard tensed, the iciness of his aura returning tenfold to the point where Frank nearly hissed from telepathic frostbite, before he was violently shoved out the door for the hundredth time since their meeting. Frank blinked a few times, stunned, and he barely processed the sensation before Gerard was responding. 

"How do you know about that?" Gerard's attempt at keeping his voice smooth as possible was contradicted by the tension forming in the air, simmering under Frank's chilled skin and truly pulling him through the wringer. 

"I — well, I met one that night. Her name's Jamia. But she's not a witch? She's totally ordinary, she says her parents are weirdos obsessed with magic and their . . . their tall tales." Frank bit the inside of his cheek hard before he could spill too much, his cheeks warming over with peculiar embarrassment. 

Gerard sighed deeply, his eyes fluttering shut. "She told you the story." 

"No." Frank answered far too quickly. Gerard shot him a sharp dubious look and Frank tore into his lower lip anxiously until the truth was coaxed out of him. "I — okay, yeah. She told me everything. The stuff about witches and vegan vampires. Or vegetarian, I don't know, it sounded really strange and . . . a little horrifying." 

"You didn't believe her, did you?" 

"Of course not. None of that shit is real. Even if it was, some things didn't add up." Frank evaded his own hair standing up at the back of his neck, the way he almost choked on the words escaping him and wondering why if there was no way he could ever believe in such an elaborate tale if it was an impossible thing. 

"It's stemmed from their resentment towards our ancestors. My mother and father's, also mine and Mikey's. It's a feud that's gone on for a few generations and to spite us, they created a horrific tale about us being a line of vampires to alienate us more." Gerard spoke as though he learned the words from a script, and had they been lies or the truth, Frank couldn't tell a difference from the burning intensity of Gerard's gaze entrapping his. "I don't know why my parents wanted to return here so near to their town. Perhaps they thought it was easy to move on after all these years, but witches are . . . very venomous. Their grudges are eternal, handed down to all of their children." 

"So, what, it's like a Capulet versus Montague thing? You can't simply exist within the same vicinity without a fight breaking out?" Frank digested the other side of the story, uncertain about the way he felt after he already adjusted to the chilling knowledge fed to him by someone on the opposing team. He knew it was all false, it had to be, and Gerard's version made much more sense despite it being a whirlwind of insanity— so why didn't it settle right in Frank's stomach?  

"Essentially." 

Frank breathed out a mirthless chuckle. "Well that sucks. I just —  I don't get it. Jamia's completely harmless. If she saw you, she'd probably just avoid you. I don't see her being the type to fist fight you in Adam's driveway."

 "I couldn't be sure how harmful or harmless the person attending was." Gerard's following sigh dripped with regret, a rueful smile ghosting the corners of his mouth. "No one could clarify that for me. I didn't want to arrive only to cause a problem and leave you regretting your decision to invite me." 

Frank bit off the final detail to Gerard's reasons for blowing him off. Again, he kicked himself for not thinking to provide a source of communication, finding this all would've been a much softer blow if he'd thought through it a tad bit more. Still, something was missing. Like an imperative chunk was frantically torn out before it was placed in Frank's waiting hands. He looked up through his lashes at Gerard's face, the tension in his jaw, the hypnotizing gaze tinged in a mixture of guilt and anticipation for Frank's reaction. Frank still couldn't find it in him to fully trust Gerard, though some idiotic part of him yearned to, so much it was a perpetual ache disturbing his peace of mind since he didn't exactly know all the reasons why he was so drawn to the latter; or, better yet, why it was a requited feeling. 

"Something just always seems to be off with you, Gerard." Frank whispered. "I can't put my finger on it and it irritates the hell out of me. I can never tell if you're telling the truth or piecing a story together to keep me from running away." 

"If anything, Frank, it was more difficult trying to get you to keep your distance than it is trying to make you stay." Gerard stepped closer, eyes drawn to the way Frank's cheeks automatically heated at the strange tone of Gerard's voice he hadn't heard before; the corners of razor blades digging into the soft flesh of blue salvia flowers representing something they both related to, the inability to shake the other from their minds. 

"You'll find it's impossible to get rid of me when I'm determined to figure something out." Frank was conscious of the faintest shower of sparks flying between them the deeper he fell into the trap of Gerard's unyielding stare. 

"What are you trying to figure out?" Gerard stepped closer still, releasing the intoxicating scent of his, a sweet fragrance swirling under Frank's nose to completely fill his head. 

Frank's breath stuttered, his feet moving before he could allow it to bring himself as close as he dared. "You." 

Gerard swallowed harshly. "I've given you everything you need to know. We've been through this." 

"No . . . you haven't. You say you've been honest, that's a lie and you know it" Frank shook his head slowly. "I know you're hiding things from me and you're covering up the rest. It makes you impossible to get out of my head." 

Gerard released perhaps the shakiest exhale Frank had ever heard come out of him, finding it to be shocking since Gerard was always an expert at composing himself to seem one way. His guard lowered, and with that came a glimpse of something so saccharine and melancholy all the same that Frank felt a tight knot rapidly forming in the center of his chest, causing his heart to leap into a lurching pattern knocking him out of place. Frank sucked in a soft gasp through his teeth to find the absence of frigidness and he found the amber rivers running in the circle of Gerard's irises before it was torn away, leaving Frank hollow without the encompassing warmth. The phantom sensation rang out through him and it was peculiarly familiar, as though Frank experienced it before, but he wasn't certain when. 

"There's plenty of better things out there that could earn your resolve. What could possibly be so intriguing about me?" Gerard cut into Frank's moment of being stunned speechless. 

With that, Frank scoffed, his head swimming a bit and causing him to lose a portion of his filter. "I've told you. Your strange moods, the way you speak sometimes. Your freakishly quick reflexes and speed. The things I've felt near you when you aren't shutting me out. These things keep piling up and I don't plan on forgetting them to your convenience. I swear, I will figure it out, whether you want me to or not." 

Gerard's eyes flashed, his mouth pinched and tense. "You must have the most colorful theories." He didn't deny something more intricate was shrouded beneath the surface, nor did he confirm it, leaving a challenge Frank was willing to pursue headfirst.

"I can't really elaborate on them because you always cut me short. You somehow have a perfectly reasonable explanation for everything, you almost had me believing it. But I don't think I believe a word you say anymore, Gerard." Frank came out with the truth because he hadn't latched onto the bait; he wasn't as naive and gullible as he was before. He always knew to trust his gut instinct since the day he realized his capabilities, his intuitive side that always came out sharp and correct, and that part of him was raging against everything that was nearly convinced by Gerard's scarily convincing words. Something was to be unearthed, something beyond comprehension. 

They'd gravitated towards each other the way they had before. Standing at such a close proximity, it would look suggestive from afar, not to mention their unwavering gazes were locked onto one another and their breathing became a touch more shallow as their bodies were more aware of their closeness than their conscious. 

Gerard's face softened, loosening the tension around his mouth, his jaw unlocking. He seemed almost overcome by wonder, a rush of its silkiness seducing Frank. 

"I like how you say my name." Gerard's words punched through Frank's chest and sank way low into his abdomen, a flurry of uninvited tingles breaking out through his insides. Frank's lips parted as though to shape around Gerard's name again, but he held his tongue, catching himself in the midst of the act. Instead, blood rushed under his cheeks, his heart stammering. He watched with wide eyes as Gerard's head cocked to the side the slightest bit, watching the wave of blood coloring Frank's face. 

They both held their breath as Gerard lifted his hand, bringing it so close to Frank's cheek in the ghost of a touch. Just the phantom of it and the shadow of Gerard's elegant fingers hovering so close to his skin, Frank's skin crackled with electricity, his body tensing in anticipation. It was then he realized his determination to learn everything was not rooted in his frustration and stubbornness, but in fascination for this beautiful creature he felt unworthy of standing in the presence of. 

Frank was utterly fucked. He knew exactly where this would lead him and he wasn't prepared in the slightest for it, but fuck him if he was going to fight it. There was no such thing as battling the inevitable. 

"You infuriate me," Frank breathed, "Just tell me what all of this is for. Tell me what you want from me." 

Gerard searched Frank's eyes for a long moment. He slowly lowered his hand to rest it at his side and already, Frank missed the closeness. "I couldn't be so selfish to ask anything of you, Frank. But I'll take anything you're willing to give me." 

Frank's heart lurched just as the trill of the school bell echoed through the premises. He mouth gaped, his hands reaching out, but Gerard was already broken out of their shared trance, hardened all over once again. He gave one look back before he briskly made his escape, eventually coalescing into the outpouring crowd of people scattering onto the pavement to make their way to their next class. Frank felt his presence in his palms, in his staticky insides, in his cheek glowing bright red as though Gerard had went through with making skin-on-skin contact. He could barely catch his breath, his mind swarming with a mixture of fragments of the past, chilling tales and bitter lies, and the most recent thing enveloping his heart in velvet having yet to fully defrost, but only time could rid of the remaining iciness he needed to clear through. 

— 

School was out and everyone made their escape out on the parking lot where engines were revved and cheery voices called out to their friends to arrange meet-ups and study groups outside of school hours. Frank strolled past the gates with one of his headphones nestled in his ear at full volume when Adam caught up to him, clapping him on the shoulder and startling Frank out of his skin. 

"So, what's this I've been hearing around you beating Gerard's ass at lunch today?" Adam selected the most eccentric conversation starter Frank had ever heard. 

Frank's eyes bugged out and he skidded to a halt on the slick pavement, nearly slipping to his death if it weren't for Adam steadying him with a booming laugh. 

"What?" Frank exclaimed, "I didn't beat anyone's ass. Who's saying I fought Gerard?" 

"Alright, I know you can definitely pack a punch but I didn't think you were going around breaking noses." Adam stepped back and slid his thumbs under the straps of his backpack, amusement dancing in his eyes. "People have been talking about your confrontation at lunch and then you two going off someplace else." 

Frank groaned. He'd already predicted they'd make a plentifully good topic of gossip amongst their classmates, but he hadn't anticipated it sparking up so soon. "I was just upset over him never showing up at the party and I asked him what the fuck that was about, I wasn't planning on fighting him. That's ridiculous." 

Adam's eyebrows rose dubiously. "You looked pretty pissed, dude, you scolded him in front of his family. Alicia was about to rip your head off." 

Frank suppressed a shiver recalling the strange animosity digging daggers into his soul when he met Alicia's heated stare. "I was as pissed as I seemed, but we sorted it out. Kind of."

 Honestly, Frank wasn't wholly confident everything had been pushed back into the past. Gerard attempted to seal open wounds with his voice like velvet concocting a story that would suffice as a bandage, but Frank's intuition bled through still. His mind wandered back to the way Gerard seemed to acknowledge he couldn't fool Frank despite his claims he'd no longer do so— he was covering up something he didn't want Frank to exhume. Gerard was shrouded in the shadow of his secrecy, Frank sensed it stirring within him at all times, so much that he began wondering if it was the source of his dejection. 

"Look, Frank, I can't tell you what to do obviously, but if this guy upsets you so much then why do you waste your energy on him?" Adam was mystified by the situation. 

Adam wouldn't believe that Frank was just as perplexed up until a suspicion soon confirmed by an encounter explained things better to him. Still, it was a murky circumstance Frank needed to wipe clean, if only he could get his answers without so many complications or running in circles. 

"It's just weird, Adam, I don't really know how to explain it to anyone in a way where it would make sense." Frank sighed deeply. "Haven't you ever had an issue like that? It is what it is and for some reason you can't shake it off?" 

"Not really. All I know is Way's on my shitlist for messing with you." 

"No need to jot his name down on your list. I sort of have it under control, I guess things will clear up once I get ahold of myself." Frank paused. "Which would require him getting ahold of himself first." 

Adam contemplatively stared for a moment, chewing down on his lower lip with a downward furrow of his brows. "If you weren't smitten before, you definitely are now."

Frank sputtered as his heart took off into a panicked sprint. "In your fucking dreams." 

"You're denying it super fast, that means you do like him." Adam said almost too loudly before he controlled his volume, glancing around them and taking a step closer so their conversation wasn't broadcasted to the whole fucking campus. "I've told you this before, there's no other reason why you'd tolerate his bullshit for this long. You have that dazed look in your eye you didn't have the first time I asked you this. You wanna smooch him so bad." 

Frank's face set aflame and along came the longing to dig himself under the ground to never resurface. He hadn't expected such an upfront conversation apart from the one he had with Gerard that day and he wasn't sure how to cope, how to not seem so transparent as he lied through his teeth.

"There will be no smooching. None. Zero." Frank sliced his hands through the air and attempted not to stammer the words out to make it all seem more obvious. 

Adam snorted, the side of his mouth tilting higher than the other. "You're a horrible liar. Your face gets all red and your eyes go everywhere. You also sound like a girl." 

Mortified, Frank planted his face into his palm, suppressing a groan unsuccessfully— the sound tore out of his throat and he couldn't muster the strength to look up and meet his friend's eyes. 

"I've gotta get home. So do you, seriously, this campus is gonna be empty and we're still gonna be standing here chattering about dumb things." Frank shook his head vehemently, and before Adam could utter another word, which he tried to do, Frank tossed his hands in the air and started stalking away. "Goodbye, Adam! See you tomorrow." 

Frank's heart refused to be still all the way home. His distractions were dangerous to be snarled in while traipsing along the slick roads showing the beginning signs of frost. He imagined he'd be far more cautious after grazing an untimely death recently due to untrustworthy weather conditions, but his day had been far too eventful for him to merely brush it off. He couldn't rid of the lingering tightness in his chest each time a flash of Gerard's infinite eyes boring deep into his own, the closeness of their bodies that always seemed to draw together when they should've repelled one another. He thought about Adam's claims and the way it was increasingly difficult to shut down any suggestions about possible attraction to Gerard, like he was lying to himself, leaving him more unsure than ever now that it was instilled in his brain. Frank's throat remained clogged and his head was swimming, spots of red staining his cheeks, and he was breathless all the way home until the night when he collapsed into the sweet cushion of a bed cradling his exhausted bones. 

That night, Frank dreamt of Gerard again, but in a far less morbid fashion— he dreamt of a game of chess, smoldering eyes like emerald and the sea, and a ghostly touch upon his cheek.

— 

A single moment of intensity did not make a habit of being repetitive. Though, in spite of all of Frank's efforts to keep as neutral as possible, he found himself debilitated by the tendril of disappointment arising in him when heated conversations and unpredictability fell into an era of silence as the next days bled past and there was minimal interaction between himself and Gerard. As if they'd fallen into an unspoken agreement that their conversations would be cut short until Frank made his discoveries he vowed to make after refusing to foolishly believe any of Gerard's fabricated excuses for his strange traits. Frank was a tad embarrassed to say he hadn't gotten very far, trying not to intertwine solid reality with ridiculous tales and disturbing theories that anything beyond the ordinary was situated so closely to him daily. 

Frank watched his school prepare for Thanksgiving break from afar, a blur of activity and decor adding color to the otherwise dull setting he was trapped in, but he couldn't find the joy in the holidays when he knew he'd be spending it apart from his family traditions; his father's expertly seasoned dishes Frank dug into apart from the turkey and their annual trip to a rented cabin in the woodsy parts of California. Frank was by no means one with nature, he avidly avoided it at all costs, but something about their tradition made the inflamed bug bites and multiple incidents tripping over tree roots worth it, even if he returned with scraped knees and sore ankles on the verge of spraining. 

Thanksgiving would be spent in his mother's humble abode, which wasn't inherently miserable, but Frank dreaded knowing he'd need to cover most of the cooking otherwise their holiday would quite literally go down in flames. They wouldn't be inviting guests over, just the two of them soaking in each other's presence, so it couldn't be so awful after all— it all came down to the fact that Frank was still having trouble adjusting and he so rarely was apart from his usual traditions after settling down to live his life under his father's roof so long ago. 

The final day before their break began, Frank obliviously waltzed into biology class. He hadn't been paying much attention to the buzz circulating through school because his mind was preoccupied with holiday plans and futile attempts of paying no mind to Gerard, futile because they always seemed to end up locking eyes across the room and holding their gazes steady with the strangest feeling passing between them in fizzling electrical waves. 

Upon finally drifting into the present, Frank slammed hard back onto the solid earth as he plopped down in his seat and felt the color drain away from his face once he took in the props set up at the front of the classroom. 

Blood typing. 

Frank's affinity for horror movies didn't offer him immunization for real life matters. The second he caught sight of blood or caught a whiff of its bizarre metallic scent, dizziness instantly became him and a wave of nausea swirled perilously through him. Although blood typing would only require a pinprick of blood, every student would be participating, being Frank would be surrounded by the sight of multiple pricked fingers. Someone was bound to do a faulty job and shed more than what was expected of them, having no mercy on Frank's tender stomach. 

He considered sprinting out the door. Seeing as that would land him in an undesirable amount of trouble, Frank hauled himself up and shakily approached the teachers desk, leaning forward a bit so snoopy students wouldn't easily tune into the conversation. 

"Mr. Roman, I, um, I see we're doing blood typing today?" Frank cleared away the high pitch his voice nearly converted to during his brief moment of anxiety. "I'm extremely sensitive to stuff like that. I get super nauseous and honestly, I might even pass out." 

Mr. Roman didn't seem fazed in the slightest. "Yeah, I always have a couple kids that are squeamish. If you need to sit this one out then you can wait outside for the remainder of the period." 

"I won't get a failing grade?" 

Mr. Roman sighed. "I can't put a missing assignment in the gradebook without your score being affected, but I usually find a way to fix it." 

Gratefully, Frank mumbled his thanks and darted out of the classroom, letting the door slam shut behind him. He heaved out a deep breath of relief and dumped his bag onto the linoleum floor, sinking down gradually onto the cool ground and drawing his knees towards his chest. He was given reminders of being teased in school for fainting at the sight of one of his classmates showing off his skinned elbow still freckled with pinpricks of leftover blood slowly oozing from the gash. His sensitivity never waned through the years despite his lack of response when it came to fictional depictions of gore— but there was the catch. It was purely fictional, meaning no human beings behind the screen were actually being torn to pieces in reality, the actors were simply receiving a paycheck to appease the lovers of gruesome films. The only time Frank felt the slightest bit queasy were the extreme flicks where it was difficult to process how special effects could've mastered something as realistic as eyeball removal or more disturbing sequences of physical torture. 

Frank dug through his bag in search of a book to pass the time by with since he'd be camping outside the door for the better part of an hour. As surprised as he was to find no other students emerged from the classroom to settle down their roiling stomach, Frank couldn't deny the peace and quiet was nice to have for a moment, making the gloomy atmosphere seem ambient. He cracked open a mystery novel he plucked from the library shelves because the cover captured his intrigue and dove into the setting of a bustling city buzzing anxiously from the fear of a loose serial killer who didn't have an inclination to a specific type of victim, random crimes at random intervals making the mystery all the more unsettling. 

Frank's peace was shattered some time later when the classroom door swung open suddenly. He jumped, his head snapping up as the book nearly fell from his hands. He instantly regretted not minding his own business when someone staggered out faintly,  a hand curling around their limp wrist as they gauntly stared at the blood trickling down their finger. They'd punctured themselves too deeply it seemed from the stream of crimson steadily dripping towards their palm, instantly causing Frank to freeze up and hold his breath under the wave of dizziness overcoming him. 

Another student hurried out to support their nauseated classmate to guide them to the restrooms as the threat of vomiting rapidly approached them. Frank considered doing the same, but he took in a few deep breaths, pinching his eyes shut and leaning his head back against the wall for a moment. The image of blood was vivid in his memory, completely unwanted but impossible to discard. Frank groaned in a mixture of misery and annoyance, kicking himself for not venturing further out into the hallway or completely out of the classroom's range. He curled a hand around his stomach and opened his eyes, finding the ground was rippling and breaking apart in vicious circles. Frank was going to pass the fuck out while slumped in front of a doorway. 

Frank struggled to stand after shoving his book into his bag. His palms slapped at the walls and grasped whatever he could, his knees buckling in warning when he placed his full weight on them. Vertigo struck him particularly hard and Frank gasped, pressing his colorless forehead against the cool wall for a moment. 

"Frank?" The voice sounded nearby. From the way Frank instantly recognized it, he concluded that he was not only faint, but falling out of his mind trying to stay conscious if he was imagining things. 

Until the voice called his name again, closer and more frantic, causing Frank to pry his eyes open blearily. They found the obscured face of Gerard Way approaching him, a smeared image of concern splitting into three then back to one solid form. 

"What are — what are you doing out of class right now?" Frank attempted to ask, but the words slurred together embarrassingly and were nearly incomprehensible. 

"I excused myself to grab something from my locker. Are you okay? You look terribly faint." 

"'M fine." Frank went to stand straight, but lost his footing, swaying dangerously. Gerard was quick to steady Frank, gasping softly as Frank couldn't even protest knowing he'd topple over if he wasn't being held in place. Black dots twirled along his vision and he groaned loudly, shaking his head. 

"It's the fucking blood typing they're doing in there," Frank pointed in what he thought was the general direction of the classroom, "I sat out here because I pass out when I see blood, but someone busted out of there with blood squirting out of their finger and I lost it." 

"Blood was spraying out? Seriously?" 

Frank grumbled and pushed at Gerard as sudden annoyance overcame him. "No, not literally, I just . . . oh god. I'm gonna pass out." 

"No, you're not." Gerard gently pushed down on Frank's shoulders. "Sit with your head between your knees for a moment." 

"I need to go to the nurse's office, I don't wanna be here." 

"Frank, trust me on this, you'll feel a little better once you sit and breathe. If you try walking, you'll certainly collapse on the sidewalk." Gerard said tersely, but only because he was stewing in raw concern which would've caught Frank off guard more if he wasn't focused on the sound of white noise flooding his ears. 

Begrudgingly, Frank took Gerard's advice because he didn't intend on smearing himself across the sidewalk the way Gerard described, and unfortunately, he was right, things would play out that was if he kept being stubborn. Frank sank down onto the ground, nearly tipping over on the way, but Gerard's hands guided him gingerly. Frank took a deep breath in and out and rested his head between his knees, eyes glued shut as he focused on the steady pattern of his deep breaths despite the way each one trembled on their way out of his lungs. He counted from sixty in his head, feeling the way some of the vertigo ebbed away in increments. 

Once it was at a level that wouldn't fully dissipate but wouldn't get any better, Frank lifted his head, blinking up slowly at Gerard who anxiously waited. It was strange seeing him become the perfect picture of worry, his eyes immediately darting downward the second Frank's fuzzy stare settled on him. 

Frank hated to ask anything of him, or anyone really, but he wasn't about to foolishly haul himself all the way to the nurse's office without support. 

"Can you help me get to the nurse?" Frank hated how frail he sounded in his current state. He cleared his throat to see if it would help thicken up his voice. 

"Of course." Gerard was surprisingly soft spoken as he held out both hands for Frank to clasp onto. Frank held onto them and was instantly sprung to his feet before he could process the pleasant coolness of Gerard's skin against the flush that returned to Frank's body in a feverish rush. He gasped, the world swimming again, causing Gerard to apologize for his stealth. He grabbed Frank's bag and carried the weight over his shoulder, slinging his free hand around Frank's waist and pressing him into his side so he could lean into his support. 

Frank's face heated traitorously as Gerard's saccharine scent swirled right underneath his nose and he was closer than he'd ever been before, feeling the firm and soft portions of Gerard's body aligning with his side. Their eyes locked fleetingly before they both looked away just as quick. Frank inhaled a deep breath and blinked at the small colorful dots scurrying in his vision, doing his best to move his legs when they began heading off towards the office. 

"I had to sit out blood typing as well. Believe it or not, I'm pretty squeamish myself." Gerard's softer tone was still staggering, but Frank couldn't deny it calmed his rapid heartbeat still locked in panic mode from nearly losing consciousness. 

"Seriously?" Frank's eyebrows rose. 

Gerard pressed his lips together. "I don't faint, but it nauseates me. I couldn't tell you the reasons why because they're beyond me." 

"I couldn't really explain why it happens to me either. One thing I do know is the smell kills me, that weird rusted penny scent, it's fucking gross." Frank shut his eyes tight and took in a shuddery breath. 

"You don't need to tell me why, Frank, you'll bring yourself to square one if you linger on it." Gerard's gentle reassurance had Frank's heart lurching. "The office isn't very far from here. Are you sure you wanna go home?" 

"I'm positive. I'm gonna be shaky for the rest of the day and sensitive to the light." Frank rolled his eyes at himself, instantly regretting it when sparks of threatening motion sickness crept in. 

"Will your mother pick you up?" 

Frank paused, instantly remembering his mother took on the day shift for the time being and he hated inconveniencing her or risking her pay since she was always occupied. Not to mention he didn't crave a repeat of the parking lot incident leaving her practically sickened with worry. 

"I can probably take myself home, it's fine." Frank would make every attempt possible to clear his head enough to at least slowly trudge down the roads to return home safely. 

Bewildered, Gerard shook his head. "There's no way you can drive home like this, Frank." 

"I'm not completely helpless, you know. I'm capable of taking care of myself." Frank bristled against Gerard's assumptions that Frank needed more aid than he was already given after something as small as a near fainting spell. And roiling nausea, but that was besides the point. 

"I know you're perfectly capable of caring for yourself, it's just right now, I don't think it's the smartest idea to drive when you're seeing double because you saw a little blood." 

"Seeing double? Says who?" Frank's gut turned over at the reminder of the droplets he'd witnessed trickling out from a classmate's index fingers. 

Gerard held up his fingers a small distance from Frank's face. "How many fingers am I holding up?" 

Frank's blinking eyes zeroed in on the digits steadily held in front of him to count, but the image split into multiple copies all blurring into one another, making it impossible for him to tally an exact amount. With a clenched jaw, he refused to outwardly admit Gerard was right and instead angled his head downward, sighing in defeat. 

"It's fine, Frank, I can take you home." Gerard took a pause in front of the entrance of the office and hauled the door open, the inside releasing a waft of warm air doing nothing pleasant for the faint fever simmering under Frank's pallid skin. 

"Wouldn't you have to miss class?" Frank asked, but before Gerard could answer, the woman working behind the front desk stood upright, asking if Frank was well with a concerned crease between her thin brows. 

"He's very faint. He tried sitting out of blood typing today, but somehow he still got a glimpse of it." Gerard smoothed out his voice into a lilting velvet river running so warmly that Frank suppressed a pleased shiver involuntarily coiling in him. 

"Let's get him to the nurse's office then. We just sent home another from the class prior to this one, there's always a few of 'em." The flustered woman, clearly affected by the swing of Gerard's perfect voice, gestured for them to head down to hall to be assisted. 

Frank hobbled his way down the hall while trying not to allow too much of his weight to depend on Gerard's helpful grip otherwise he worried he'd become more of a burden. The moment they reached a small room with a medical bench and a few uncomfortable plastic chairs propped against the wall, Frank dragged himself out of Gerard's arms, feet trudging along the disintegrating rough carpet to plop down carefully on the bench. He stretched out to rest his uneasy head on the flat pillow propped up near the top and breathed out deeply, focusing on the ceiling and squinting under the harsh fluorescent lights glaring down at him. Frank slung an arm across his eyes to block out the severe lighting, finding peace in the darkness he found there. 

"I don't think missing class would be a problem for me," Gerard picked up on their previous conversation in a soft murmur hardly reaching over a whisper. "I can persuade the faculty that you're incapable of driving and you have no one to pick you up. They won't have an issue with it." 

"Of course they'll have an issue with it, you're a student. They don't have classes here for nothing." 

Gerard's charmed chuckle took Frank by surprise. "No need to be so snippy. After all, I am saving your life for the millionth time." 

Frank tossed his arm away from his face and turned his head to find Gerard sitting in the plastic chair nearest to the bench, deep green eyes emitting that peculiar warmth Frank repeatedly sensed in him a multitude of times during recent events. It always made his stomach churn, but his heart undeniably fluttered at the way it flourished under his skin and whispered to the hidden valleys inside that harbored an unwanted fondness for the brutality of mystery, the epitome of beauty imbedded in all things seemingly disastrous. 

With warm cheeks, Frank casted his eyes away, folding his fingers together atop of his stomach and holding on tight as his intake of breath trembled. "Sorry. I guess it's an instinct to be a little defensive by now. I appreciate you helping me out. This situation is just . . . a little embarrassing." 

"How so?" Gerard leaned forward, sparked by the heat of intrigue. 

Frank swallowed thickly to sense him so close. "Well . . . for starters, I almost passed out in front of you, and you had to drag my ass all the way here. Now you have to drive me home." 

"It doesn't inconvenience me the way you think it does, Frank. You've saved me from a few periods of sheer boredom by giving me an excuse to ditch." Gerard's voice wrapped around Frank's name like the most delicate paper weaved together from pearl extract and ground diamonds, planted into Frank's palms like the most exceptional gift. 

Frank couldn't resist cracking a small smile, a chuckle slipping out. "Who did I save you from?" 

"Mrs. Linmire and her most thrilling lectures about our government." Gerard rolled his eyes. "One of the most insufferable classes I've ever taken since I first enrolled in school." 

"Government's the fucking worst." 

"I'd rather grow a little nauseous at the sight of blood just like you instead of sitting through one of her classes. So, really, you've done me a favor here." Gerard rested his chin on his folded fist, clear traveling along Frank's features. "Getting to have a pleasant conversation with you is a treat for me as well." 

Frank's face was engulfed in redness when the disinterested nurse entered the room, asking to be informed of the situation. He stammered as he explained to her his reasons for being there, avoiding Gerard's smug smirk for flustering Frank to the point where he could barely speak correctly. Frank thought he'd combust when the nurse noted his incredibly flushed complexion, retrieving an ice pack for him to hold against his head and giving him the option to either stay until his dizziness passed or head on home. 

Choosing the latter option, Frank stood with the help of Gerard's frosty hands, bemused over how the blasting heater did little to melt Gerard's frigid temperature. 

"Who needs an ice pack when I can just hold one of your freezing hands to my forehead." Frank dared to linger a bit on the playful side despite his better instincts to stay reserved and brief, peering to gauge Gerard's reaction. 

Gerard's faint smile pulled at Frank's strings connected to a heart that took flight as Gerard lifted a hand to gently graze it against Frank's forehead, brushing away a lock of hair and leaving behind a trail that burned deeper than any fever brewing under Frank's skin despite the initial coolness. Frank couldn't believe that touch alone was more relieving than any work an ice compact could do even if he held it against his skin for hours. 

Gerard leaned close to whisper, "Go sit down and pretend you have the worst illness ever." 

Frank was still reeling even though he'd barely been touched when Gerard strode to the front desk, confident that he'd be allowed off the hook to take Frank home. Skeptical as he was, Frank draped himself on one of the rigid plastic chairs, tilting his head back while holding the ice pack tightly against his head as he grimaced in feigned discomfort. He prayed he put on as a good of a show as Gerard instructed him to, but he realized he hardly needed to put out his best acting skills as he cracked an eye open and witnessed Gerard being his glamorous self, twirling the receptionist around his finger with his charm and otherworldly good looks. 

Frank scarcely contained himself as Gerard approached him with a terribly suppressed smirk of victory. He was helped to his feet and whisked out the door in seconds, into the soft sprinkle of rainfall joining the quiet rumble of thunder stewing in the dreary clouds up high. 

"We're free!" Frank exclaimed, "If I knew all I needed was you wooing the staff to get me out of this place, I would've asked for your help sooner." 

"I'm said to be a very charming young man. It's healthy to use it to your advantage sometimes." Gerard was practically bombarding Frank with astonishing responses and actions, different from his usual self for once. Something about his lack of restraint caused a tranquil softness in his face making him look his age, suddenly growing nearer to Frank than ever before; it was too easy to forget Gerard wasn't part of a separate kind. Even so, Frank couldn't be completely certain about that. 

"The rain actually feels nice for once. Thanks for making me turn into a lobster in front of the nurse, by the way." Frank tilted his head back and allowed the mist to fall over his face, refreshing as ever, almost leading him to sticking his tongue out like a child prancing through a storm. 

"The nurse hadn't entered the room yet. It was a little funny that she noticed how red your face was, I must say." Gerard voice softened so it held the brightest candle to the caress of the misting rains soothing Frank's flushed skin sweetly. 

Frank opened his eyes and found Gerard peering down at him with open interest, attempting to take him apart on the outside to view what laid within. Frank was given the advantage of sensing most things Gerard harbored in his befuddling soul, yet some imperative fragments were missing, so a touch of fairness resided between them; two people figuring each other out piece by piece, often coming across dismay and doubt, but the other side was filled with fascination and yearning. 

It was strange sensing yearning in Gerard, a resonant tugging Frank felt in his chest when their eyes met, causing his own to increase and their alike emotions entangled. Frank wondered what he wished to obtain, stumbling across the barrier in his ability that left him huffing and distraught. 

"So . . . you're gonna take me home then?" Frank cleared his throat softly, dropping his gaze down to his battered shoes squeaking against the slick pavement as he took a step towards the parking lot. 

"We'll take my car. I can just return here with one of my siblings so I can drop off your truck later and they'll take me back home from then on." 

Frank nodded, distantly thinking back to the scathing glare Alicia pointed his way in the cafeteria not long ago. Drifting into his thoughts, he barely noticed his feet moving along the parking lot in step with Gerard who guided him until Gerard pried open the passenger door for him, stepping backwards and gesturing towards the inside invitingly. 

"I do remember how to open car doors," Frank jested, "But thank you." 

Gerard simply grinned in response, shutting the door as soon as Frank was situated in the leather seat. Frank noticed how tidy the inside of the car was; not a speck of dust in sight, perfectly pristine seats, not a single scratch obscuring the windshield mostly clear aside from the dewdrops of rain freckled onto the surface, something inevitable to come across in Astoria. Frank inhaled the scent of forest pine radiating from the air freshener dangling from the rear view mirror mingling with the saccharine smell constantly radiating from Gerard's skin. 

Frank shared his address for Gerard to punch it into the GPS before they were whisked away onto the roads at an alarming speed, though Frank hadn't expected Gerard to be a non-reckless driver since most of his mannerisms were out of the ordinary. 

Tapping his fingers along to a beat Frank assembled in his distracted mind, his thoughts constantly drifted back to Gerard's enigmatic family, his single encounter with them where he undoubtedly made a repugnant first impression. 

"Your family probably hates me for confronting you in front of them." Frank figured he'd share what he presumed to either gain confirmation or reassurance now that the thought perturbed him anew. 

Slightly baffled, Gerard looked between Frank and the road, raising his eyebrows. "You really think they hate you for something completely justified?" 

"Justified as it was, I sort of . . . humiliated you. I can't be their favorite person for that, you're their family." Frank's cheeks heated with shame despite knowing it was completely deserved, otherwise he would've never done it. He pressed the ice pack against his face in hopes of calming his habitual flush.

"They don't hate you. They understood when I briefly filled them in, sparing a few details for privacy reasons, of course." Gerard's fingers tightened around the steering wheel. "They knew I felt terribly about something. Your confrontation cleared the air." 

"Alicia wanted to slit my throat." 

A muscle in Gerard's jaw twitched, his mouth screwing tightly shut for a moment. "Alicia hates everyone." His voice was rusty as the words came out. 

Frank sighed deeply. "I'm no exception."

Gerard remained silent for a long moment. Frank looked out the window, unsure why he was so bothered to not be given the same form of understanding the rest of Gerard's family graciously offered him when he didn't know any of them personally. Bouncing his leg, Frank tilted his head back for a moment in the silence. 

Finally, Gerard broke the awkward tension forming. "Alicia's approval is extremely difficult to obtain. She's so picky, I'm not even sure how my brother managed to capture her interest. Anyway, she's a bit of a pain in the ass, you would hate to be around her for long." 

Frank's head nearly shot up in pure shock to hear Gerard relaying actual details and his own insight on one of his family members instead of cutting off the conversation with a terse response. Frank's eyebrows knitted together, large eyes settling on Gerard. 

"But you all seem so close. I didn't expect you to have many negative opinions about anyone in your family." 

Gerard chuckled. "We're siblings. Whether it's by blood or not. Of course we clash, especially Alicia and I. She's not so fond of me either. You two have one thing in common; you both find me infuriating." 

Frank snorted and dropped the ice pack into his lap. "We'd have a field day bonding over that." 

Gerard's lips spread into a sparkling grin. "I suppose I should find that offensive, but that's one hell of a mental image." 

Hesitantly, Frank tangled his fingers together, toying with them as he tugged his lip ring thoughtfully. "What are your other siblings like?" 

For a moment, Gerard hesitated as well, a rush of caution falling over Frank as it overcame Gerard. He held his breath, preparing for rejection and the rush of a door slamming centimeters away from his face, but he was only met with the feeling gradually melting away to his infinite bewilderment. 

"Kristin's possibly one of the kindest and most . . . enthusiastic people I've ever met. Very optimistic, it tends to be soothing." Gerard thought through his brief descriptions before sharing them. "Mikey's reserved, shy, but he's very empathetic and adaptable. Any situation we fall into, he acts as if he's lived through it thousands of times, and it puts us at ease. Alicia's difficult, but she's got plenty of resilience. So rock-solid that it's admirable. It makes her look like she's only concerned with herself, but she's fiercely protective." 

"Yeah, I see that in her . . . Mikey's your only blood-related sibling, right?" 

"That's right." Gerard nodded. "Our parents couldn't have more children. Though they always wanted more. Some couples envision a large family, so many little ones running around that they can hardly keep up. It's a shame." He trailed off with a melancholy tone of voice, his eyes distant despite being focused on the road. 

Frank's chest clenched from the phantom pain ringing out in result to the grief Gerard held in his heart for his parents. He swallowed hard, turning to watch the rainfall for a moment. "You're lucky you found Kristin and Alicia." 

Gerard's sadness faded into a wistful expression evoking a faint smile. "Yes, we're very lucky. It seems we were meant to find each other." 

"Do you believe in stuff like that? That good things are meant to happen just like the bad things?" Frank asked softly. 

"I'd like to think so. There needs to be a balance somehow, don't you think?" Gerard turned with his magma gaze melting Frank's very core each time their eyes connected. 

Frank had doubts about good karma, thinking his life always tended to have a lack of balance or a shortage of events allowing him the power to make clear judgement on the matter. Yet, being met with a searing pair of eyes and feeling the sway of willows and wildflowers bursting to life beyond them, Frank's direction was changing drastically towards his long awaited balance of good and bad. 

"I don't really know," Frank left it at that, "But I'll let you know if I change my mind." 

"I'll ask again in a few months, since we're bound to bump heads time after time at school." The corner of Gerard's mouth tilted up. "Since we're asking questions . . . I have one for you." 

Frank immediately grew wary. Gerard caught wind of it and a laugh bubbled up to his lips, shaking his head. "You don't know what I'm gonna ask you and you're already dreading it." 

"You really can't blame me." Frank rolled his eyes. "Just ask me, I'm sure I can handle anything at this point." 

Gerard sobered up almost instantly once his brief round of amusement passed, causing Frank to do the same. Gerard glanced at Frank once, humming lowly. 

"How's your quest going? Have you figured me out yet?" Gerard attempted to make the question come out as lightly as all of his previous responses and statements before, but it was sharp around the edges like hidden fissures in porcelain. 

Frank hadn't expected Gerard to indulge his oath to accumulate enough evidence to prove Gerard wasn't all he seemed, also claiming he'd uncover the secrets he shrouded in darkness to keep just out of reach of Frank's outstretched arms. All proper evidence evaded him, however he had come up with ridiculously far out theories that had his nose wrinkling as he pieced them together while gazing up at his ceiling at the quietest hours of the evening when sleep was far beyond him. 

"Well, it's hard to get any more solid evidence when you're refusing to throw me a bone." Frank muttered, sinking deeper into the seat and wishing he could disappear into the polished leather. 

"You don't have anything?" Gerard sounded suspiciously hopeful, which made Frank's teeth snap together petulantly. 

"I have theories, I'm just not gonna tell you any of them." 

Gerard groaned. "You can't say something like that and deprive me of hearing any of them." 

"They're — they're just. Too embarrassing to say out loud." Frank tipped his head back and squeezed his eyes shut. "I'm just letting you know I have them so you don't think I've given up." 

"Can I hear just one? The least mortifying one you have." 

"Gerard . . . I really don't—" 

"I'll answer any question you've got for me in exchange for one single theory. Only one, I promise not to ask for more." Gerard persisted. 

It was too grand of a deal to surpass. Frank only needed to sacrifice a smidgen of his dignity. Any other respectable human being wouldn't settle for it, but in Frank's case, he might as well have been offered a coin of the rarest gold to have ever run through the ancient mines. 

Dropping his face into his palm, Frank sighed heavily, dragging his palm all the way down and curling his hand into a loose fist to rest his chin on it as he kept his eyes straight ahead. He laughed softly at his own self, shutting his eyes. 

"Since you're so adamant about hearing one. I thought . . . and I mean, I really considered that maybe you were, um. A Peter Parker type of case." 

"Peter Parker?" Gerard sound completely puzzled, meaning Frank needed to embarrass himself further be elaborating. 

Groaning, Frank pinched the bridge of his nose and shook his head. "I thought you were bitten by a radioactive spider. That's why you have those freakish reflexes and the speed, just — enhanced senses. I know how stupid that sounds. Stuff like that only happens in comics and movies, otherwise we'd have tons of Spidermans fighting crime in the world. Or, er, Spidermen." 

Before Frank was fully finished expelling the humiliating finishing touches to his outlandish theory, Gerard was already failing to hold in his laughter, broken little titters and chuckles spilling out. Frank's face reddened to the point where the rush of blood was dizzying and he hid his sheepish grin in his hand, turning his head in the opposite direction. 

"A radioactive spider . . . that's something I didn't think I'd be hearing from you." Gerard's voice danced with amusement. Arriving to their destination, he smoothly slid into the vacant driveway, setting the car into park to continue their talk. 

"Just grasping at straws. Trying to make sense of things." Frank lightly kicked his bag resting between his feet. 

"Well . . ." Gerard dropped down a note lower, all laughter draining away. "What if I told you you're not that far off?" 

Frank's stomach fell out and dropped low into the ground. His round eyes wheeled around, finding Gerard's arched eyebrow and the remains of a smile stained in the ominous warning radiating from the inside out. 

"Seriously?" Frank choked. 

Gerard looked between both of Frank's enlarged eyes, pressing his lips together. "I'm definitely no superhero, Frank. That's where you're wrong." 

Frank's mind instantly flashed back to every moment Gerard miraculously materialized to rescue Frank from life threatening or simply unideal situations, and a dubious scoff rose out of him. "You saved me from being turned into a human accordion in the parking lot. Even today, you were there when I needed someone to help me get to the nurse. How can you say something like that?" 

Gerard's eyes fell into his lap. He was suddenly too somber, sinking back into the reserved person Frank recalled most, almost leaving him pleading for Gerard not to return to his cold demeanor after quickly becoming fond of the warmest side of him. 

"Because you make me want to be the hero, Frank." Gerard murmured. The complete opposite of what Frank ever anticipated him to utter once he crawled back under his shell. 

Frank was by no means a damsel in distress; he frequently got tangled into strange situations, his own clumsiness made him a risk to himself, but he never awaited a knight in shining armor to come charging towards him with waving banners to rescue him from the clutches of awful luck. He couldn't deny he found a savior in Gerard, as unlikely as it seemed, once imagining Gerard preferred him dead so he'd no longer be inconvenienced by his existence. 

But Frank couldn't bring himself to lash out, saying he wasn't in need of a hero, not when warmth encompassed him on the inside and belled out so vividly that he wondered if Gerard could feel the change in temperature the way Frank did. 

Frank was tired of indulging the enemies narrative. All of the unnecessary disdain and walking on eggshells, finding it was far more draining entertaining the facade when getting along with Gerard was so fluid and natural that it felt instinctive. All intensity aside.

"Hang out with me more," Frank softly urged, "You don't have to be so distant anymore. It doesn't have to be like this at all, Gerard. I know I kind of — I pushed you away again just when we could've fixed things, but I didn't really want to." 

Gerard slowly looked up and met Frank's eyes, his own pair softening as if he couldn't help it when he looked at Frank. "It still amazes me that you're willing to waste your time on me." 

"I'm not wasting it if I'm enjoying it." Frank corrected him instantly. "I like having actual conversations with you. When we're not mentally gunning each other down." 

Gerard let out a gentle laugh, his eyes twinkling. "So do I, Frank." 

Frank's inkling of things turning out as planned that time around was a touch of intuition he trusted in, tightly grasping in hopes of things keeping on a steady trail instead of twisting in an unwanted direction as they had many times before. 

"We're going on break after today for a while . . . maybe we could meet up one of these days." Frank suggested timidly, surprised by his own meek composure when he normally didn't allow himself to stoop to such a vulnerable level in front of anyone. He rolled his lips into his mouth and chuckled once at his demeanor. 

"I suppose we can," Gerard murmured in agreement. "Do you mind if I ask for your number?" 

Taken aback, Frank's eyes were wide, his mouth opening and closing. He nodded his suddenly dizzy head and tugged his phone out of his pocket as Gerard did the same, where they exchanged them to quickly tap their numbers into each other's contact lists. 

"I'll send you a text message soon." Gerard smiled warmly, "Any plans for Thanksgiving?" 

"Oh, you know, just staying home with my mom and making a bunch of food. Or— well, I'll be the one doing most of the cooking. I don't want the entire fire department racing to my house on a holiday." Frank's following chuckle was disturbingly breathless.

"My family and I aren't too into holidays apart from Christmas." 

"Why only Christmas?" 

"There's something special about it." Gerard said distantly, his smile nostalgic. "I won't reiterate a cheesy line about how it brings people together. It just feels terribly lonely to miss out on Christmas." 

"Well . . . it's just around the corner. My dad and I always put up our tree as soon as we get back from our Thanksgiving trip." Frank's eyes nearly misted over recalling traditions he opted out of that year, how the silence had been increasing since his move to Astoria. Distance wouldn't have been such a huge deal if he couldn't feel it in the lack of words exchanged more than anything. He once assumed they'd call nearly every day and catch up, attached by the hip as they were, but Frank Sr. seemed to be wrapped up in his new life with his wife. 

"You miss him." Gerard quickly noted the way Frank's moment of contentment drained away as he floated back to the present. 

Sucking in a breath, Frank waved it off as though it didn't matter despite the impact he knew it would eventually have on him. "Yeah, of course, but it's nothing I can't manage. I wanted to come out here, the holidays won't be terrible. I love my mom, it's just a different flow of things I'll have to adjust to." 

Gerard hummed in acknowledgment. A curtain of silence fell over them, only that time, there was no thick net of tension to tangle into, only the comfort of quiet breathing and pondering eyes frequently crossing paths as they stole glances at one another. 

"You should head inside, Frank. Get some rest." Gerard's honeyed voice twirled along Frank's skin. 

Frank for once didn't wish to dash out the door to make an alleviating escape. He wished he could curl up in the passenger seat and ask Gerard what their family traditions were for the holidays, if he wished they'd celebrate more things, if he ever complied a list of things to receive as possible gifts or if he preferred giving. Only, if Frank lingered, nightfall would approach and the most silent hours of the night would envelop them. On top of that, he wouldn't be wasting his opportunity to ask Gerard another question with a promised answer, he'd need time to think of the perfect thing to ask before taking Gerard up on his offer. 

"I guess I should, huh?" Frank ask without anticipating an answer. He sighed and reached for his school bag. "I'll probably just take a cat nap and I'll be fine." 

"I'm only a call away now if you need anything more." Gerard generously offered, bringing color to Frank's cheeks. 

"Thanks for everything, Gerard. I'll return the favor somehow." Frank slung the strap of his bag over his shoulder, hand loosely curling around the door handle with a great deal of hesitation. 

"You don't have to do anything for me, Frank. Actually — maybe one thing. I'll need your truck keys to return it to you, if you don't mind." 

Frank dug out his keys from his bag pocket and let them pool in Gerard's outstretched hand.  Gerard's lips curled up fondly, eyes capturing Frank's and holding them captive for a moment more. 

Frank's breath caught. "I didn't give you my number just so you can leave it in your phone to gather dust, okay?" 

Gerard's laughter swam through Frank's head. "I promise to reach out. Have a lovely holiday, Frank. Enjoy your time with your mother." 

Having no other reason to stall, Frank tore his eyes away from Gerard's and unwilling stepped out of the car, watching it shut with the gentle shove he gave. With a final wave, the car swiftly split out of the driving, turning onto the street and gradually fading into the distance, swallowed up by the fog emerging from the woods beyond them. 

Frank now had time to feel exhaustion settle in now that he no longer had a distraction from it. He entered his home, lightheaded, and trudged up the stairs, dropping his bag somewhere on the ground and shrugging into a more comfortable pair of soft clothes to drop into his unmade bed. Curling up under the covers, Frank's head was still filled with the lingering scent of Gerard's skin, his body humming in places where his hands had been, the exact location here his arm settled to sling across his waist in support of his movements. Frank couldn't believe the way his breath hitched as he shut his eyes and found the fresh memories of Gerard's dazzling grin imbedded in his mind, an image he couldn't anticipate fading around the edges anytime soon when they made arrangements to set off towards a successful friendship that time around. 

Only, Frank felt something more possessing him, curling demandingly around his unevenly thumping heart and cutting his breath short, tightening his gut in a feeling that wasn't quite nausea, for it was too warm to be anything distressing. 

—— 

I said this already but I'm gonna say it again, welcome back! This is a beast of a chapter to compensate for the time I went without updating this fic and I'm just letting you know I have no intentions on abandoning this fic. The next chapter is already far into the works and the romance is building! I'm excited. 

I hope you liked this! Please let me know what you think, I love seeing your thoughts!

"I threw you the obvious just to see if there's more behind the eyes of a fallen angel, eyes of a tragedy." 

-rosexo