Frank scurried around his room in a frenzy of excitement, trying to make sure he didn't leave anything important behind, because he really didn't want to have to return to this hated house ever again.

As Frank threw everything he had collected into the large duffle bag he had found under his bed, he couldn't help but smile to himself as he realized that this was the last night he would spend alone in his room, wishing for Gerard's soft arms instead of the empty sheets he was forced to lie in.

No longer would he have to flinch in fear every time he heard footsteps approaching his door, or sneak into the kitchen as quietly as possible for a snack, hoping not to wake his volatile father. That was all behind him now, and Frank felt slightly stupid for not letting Gerard take him away earlier.

It wasn't like his boyfriend hadn't tried to convince him to leave hundreds of times, but Frank had always been terrified by the idea, and not necessarily of his father finding him, but of Gerard getting tired of him and changing his mind.

Not that Gerard ever gave any signs that he would do that to Frank, but it still worried him. To this day, Frank couldn't understand what Gerard saw in him; he was just a scrawny punk kid that let his father use him as a punching bag, while Gerard was gorgeous, not to mention an aspiring artist, and he could find someone much better suited for him that was closer to his age, but he hadn't.

Ever since Gerard had graduated from high school, Frank had been waiting for him to leave; not that Frank wanted him to, actually - even thinking about it made Frank want to curl up in a ball and cry for years, but that's what happened to high school romances. They were fun while it lasted, but then they were over, and Frank was convinced that in a few years, he would be nothing but another memory to Gerard.

Gerard seemed determined to prove him wrong though, and Frank was finally starting to believe that he was in it for the long haul. It was sort of hard to doubt him after he had stayed in New Jersey just for Frank, even though he could be in New York right now attending the art school of his dreams.

It was the promise ring that had finally broken through Frank's stubbornness though. Frank had never in his wildest imaginings ever thought that anyone would ever buy him a ring, and even though it wasn't an actual engagement ring - they were both much too young for that anyway, it basically meant the same thing to Frank, and he never took it off.

Because he did want to spend the rest of his life with Gerard, and he knew it was stupid to say that - he wasn't even eighteen yet, but he couldn't ever see himself feeling this way about another person, and he didn't want to.

Gerard was his everything; his rock, his shoulder to cry on, the person who would always cheer him up when nothing else could even make him crack a smile. Frank was pretty sure he would be insane right now if it wasn't for Gerard, and he was finally going to stop doubting him and take a leap of faith.

Frank had never voiced his secret fears to his boyfriend, because he knew Gerard would take it as if he had done something wrong, even though that was the farthest thing from the truth. Gerard wouldn't understand why Frank felt this way, and he would blame himself, and Frank refused to let that happen.

Frank just couldn't comprehend how someone as perfect as Gerard could possibly love him, especially when his own parents didn't even manage to provide him with a smidge of affection, but Gerard had proved time and time again that he wasn't going to give up on Frank, and it was idiotic of Frank to continue to put him off just because he was afraid of something that might never come to pass.

And Gerard was right; Frank couldn't stand living with his father for one more day, and even if the worst happened, and Gerard did end up breaking things off eventually, there was no way he would force Frank to return here, he could never be so cruel. Knowing Gerard, he would probably make sure Frank had a job and enough money for his own place before asking him to move out.

Frank shook his head to clear his thoughts, because he was done entertaining the idea that Gerard was going to leave him. He wanted to enjoy this moment, because any second now, Gerard was going to return, and Frank would leave this house full of bad memories without a backward glance.

Peering around his room one last time to make sure he hadn't missed anything vital, Frank stacked the things he was taking with him on the bed before doubling back to pick up his beloved guitar.

But when Frank leaned over to open the beaten up guitar case resting on the floor, his head exploded in an unexpected rush of pain, and he was forced to freeze in his hunched over position for the time being.

His migraines had never been like this before; usually, they stared out as a dull ache before escalating into the kind of agony that prevented him from moving, but this had hit him like a freight train, knocking the breath out of his body and leaving him shaky and weak.

This was even worse than the one last night, and Frank couldn't move, couldn't see, he could barely draw a breath, much less call for help.

Instead of ebbing like Frank had hoped, the pain only intensified, causing his knees to wobble before his legs gave out on him entirely, and he collapsed onto the carpeted floor with a soft cry.

As wave after wave of burning agony pulsed thought Frank's head, he clutched his temples tightly with both hands, trying to use the pressure of his palms to stop his skull from splitting in half, even though that probably wasn't what was happening, but it sure as hell felt that way.

"Gerard!" Frank tried to scream, but it came out in more of a weak whimper instead, and even that small attempt at speech caused his head to throb wildly.

Gerard didn't come though, he had only left a few minutes ago, and Frank was left to writhe helplessly on the unforgiving ground as tears poured down his face.

Frank needed to get up and reach his phone, but movement was impossible right now, and he could only pray that Gerard came back quickly, because Frank couldn't stand this agony for much longer.

It was just too much; an intense, never ending, overwhelming sensation that put all of Frank's past migraines to shame.

Frank's stomach was roiling violently, and even though he tried to hold it back, he found himself retching painfully, vomiting up the small amount of food he had eaten last night onto the already dirty carpet.

When he was finished, Frank tried to roll away from his own sick, because the smell was making him nauseous again, but he still couldn't move, and his eyesight was beginning to fade now; the edges getting fuzzy for some reason he couldn't explain.

But when his head became too heavy for his neck to support, and his hands dropped from his head to fall limply at his side, Frank finally realized that he was losing consciousness, and even though he tried to fight it as hard as he could, the blackness swallowed him whole, and he felt as if his body was sinking through the floor and into a bottomless void.

Frank's last coherent thought was of Gerard, and then everything went blank when Frank surrendered to the tempting darkness, grateful for a respite from the pain.

---------------------------------------------

Gerard retrieved his keys from the ring hanging in the front hallway before heading back outside and getting into his old black Chevy, a ridiculously large grin plastered on his face the entire time.

He spent a few minutes finding a decent song on the radio before pulling out of the driveway and turning the wheel in the direction of Frank's house, trying to keep his excitement contained so he could concentrate on driving.

Frank's house was only a block away, but Gerard chose to park a couple of houses down, just to be safe. The sun was up now, which meant Frank's mother might be awake, and even though she seemed like a decent woman - ignoring the fact that she let Frank's father beat him - Gerard didn't know how she would react if she saw Frank piling all of his things into Gerard's car.

Locking the doors and pocketing his keys, Gerard returned to Frank's house with a bounce in his steps, ecstatic to finally be taking Frank away from this awful place forever.

Gerard approached the window stealthily, expecting to see Frank waiting beside it, but when Gerard glanced into his room, he was met with a scene from his worst nightmares, and his previous happiness drained out of him like water through a sieve.

Frank was lying limply on the floor in front of his guitar stand, vomit staining the ground next to him, and he didn't move, even when Gerard gasped loudly in shock.

Gerard threw himself across the sill with a dexterity that he didn't know he possessed before scooping Frank up into his arms, checking with shaking hands to make sure that Frank was still breathing.

He was - thank god, but it was shallow and weak, and Gerard had no idea what had put him in such a state. It couldn't have been his father, he could hear him snoring on the couch from here, and Frank wasn't bearing any obvious bruises, but Frank wouldn't wake up, no matter how hard Gerard tried to rouse him.

Frank was so pale, he almost looked ghostly, and Gerard had to place his palm against Frank's chest, needing to feel his heartbeat against his skin, and it was there, fluttering softly like a caged bird in distress.

Gathering Frank into his arms as gently as he could, Gerard eased them both out the window before striding back toward his car, trying his best not to jostle Frank needlessly.

Struggling a bit with his keys and Frank's limp body, Gerard finally got the door open, laying Frank across the backseat tenderly. He made sure to turn him onto his side, just in case he threw up again, that way he wouldn't be at risk of choking on his own vomit.

Gerard knew he should call an ambulance, but if it arrived this close to Frank's house, his family might come out to see what all the commotion was about, and he couldn't let them see Frank with him, that would drive his father into a frenzy. The hospital wasn't that far away, and Gerard could drive him there in less than ten minutes, but he wasn't sure what was wrong with Frank, and he didn't know if he had that much time.

Checking his pulse again, Gerard breathed a sigh of relief when it seemed less erratic than before, even his breathing had evened out slightly, and it almost looked like he was simply sleeping.

Making a rash decision that he hoped he wouldn't regret later, Gerard rushed back to Frank's house and began moving his things from the room into his car, taking as much as he could in one trip so he could save time.

He knew Frank needed medical attention, but if he didn't take his possessions with him now, they might never get another chance to come back here without Frank's father being on the lookout for them, and Gerard didn't want to leave anything Frank cared about behind.

Finally, there was only one backpack and Frank's guitar left to take, the amp was already stowed safety in the trunk of his car, and Gerard didn't see anything else that looked important. Gerard had checked up on Frank every time he had returned to his vehicle, and he seemed to be doing better, but he still hadn't awoken.

Leaning down to place the guitar in its case, Gerard noticed a crumbled up piece of paper and a pen resting in the felt lining.

Acting on impulse, Gerard smoothed it out, grateful to see that it was blank besides a few doodles, so he scratched out a hasty note, which he left on the bed for whoever would happen to find it.

Don't bother looking for Frank

He's safe now

Please - just let him be happy

Hopefully Frank's mother would be the first one to search Frank's room, but even if his father did stumble across it, Gerard felt like he had to leave some sort of explanation, even though Frank's parents didn't deserve one.

Grabbing the last of Frank's things, Gerard bolted back to his car for the final time, placing the guitar and the backpack in the passenger seat before he climbed in and started the engine as fast as his numb hands would let him.

Now that the initial shock of the situation had worn off, Gerard was beginning to panic, and it took all the mental willpower he possessed not to break down crying.

He couldn't lose control though - not now. He needed to be strong for Frank, and whatever this was, they could get through it, but only if Gerard kept driving and pulled himself together.

He glanced in the review mirror often, but there was no change with Frank; he didn't even stir once, and worry was beginning to gnaw at Gerard's stomach like a rabid animal.

"Hang in there Frankie..." Gerard murmured to himself, wiping away the few tears that had managed to escape as he drove faster than he ever had before towards the looming hospital in the distance.

After what seemed like hours, but was probably only ten minutes, a sign for hospital parking appeared on the side of the road, and Gerard hastily left his car in the first open spot he could find in the crowded lot, not even bothering to lock the vehicle as he scooped Frank up and rushed inside.

Shouldering the large glass doors open as quickly as he could, Gerard clutched Frank to his chest as he glanced around rapidly for a nurse. He didn't know what part of the hospital he was in, and he didn't see a desk or sign in area anywhere near by, so he had no idea which direction to head in.

As he walked aimlessly in the hopes of running into one of the doctors, Gerard kept glancing down at Frank fearfully. He felt so light in his arms, it was as if Gerard was holding air, and even though his color was slowly returning to normal, Gerard was still terrified.

Finally, Gerard caught sight of a mousy haired nurse walking down the adjacent hallway, and Gerard flagged her down urgently.

"What happened," the nurse asked in a crisp tone of voice, getting straight to the point, for which Gerard was very thankful.

"I don't know, I only left him for a few minutes, and then I found him in his room...he - he won't wake up, and I -," Gerard could barely speak through the fear clogging his throat, but what he had managed to babble out seemed good enough for the nurse.

"Bring him this way," she commanded, pointing toward a row of empty stretchers which lined the walls like silent sentinels, gesturing for Gerard to place Frank on one.

"I am going to take him to get some tests done, but you will have to stay in the waiting room for now. I will send someone to fetch you when he can have visitors," she informed Gerard when he attempted to follow her as he began pushing Frank down the stark white hallway.

"No - I need to stay with him, please?" Gerard begged, but the nurse ignored him, and Gerard couldn't seem to force his legs to chase after her, they had locked up now that he had stopped moving, and Frank had already disappeared from his view by this point.

So instead of making a scene, Gerard sunk down against the wall, finally giving in to the tears that had been threatening to overwhelm him ever since he had found Frank.

Gerard wasn't sure how much time had passed before another nurse found him and gently dragged him into the waiting room, but he couldn't be bothered to check his phone to find out.

The new nurse helped Gerard sign Frank in at the front desk before showing him to the waiting room, hovering over him for a few moments, constantly asking if he was okay until she was called away by another doctor, but Gerard barely noticed her absence.

Gerard couldn't stop shivering when the realization that he was in a hospital finally sank in. He had almost managed to forget how much he detested them, but now the nervous fear was filling him up, and he was finding it hard to breathe.

The last time Gerard had been in a hospital was when Elena had died, and that memory was not one he wanted in his head, not when Frank was now trapped within these walls as well.

Burying his head in his hands as if blocking the view of this place could make it all go away, Gerard tried his best not to give into his fears, and just focus on Frank instead.

Frank needed him, and Gerard couldn't leave while Frank was still here, no matter how scared he was, so he forced himself to bury his terror and wait until he finally got an answer about what was happening with his boyfriend.

I'm tired, and I wasn't planning on working on this tonight, but I give up trying to control my brain.

I am curious what you guys think of this fic, does it still suck, is it a little bit better? Eh whatever, it's fun to write.

((((updating vibes))))

<3 starr