I heard Brendon before I saw him. He was pleading with a doctor, begging, crying, just wanting to see Ryan.

"He's my fiancé!" He cried. "Please just let me see him! If he's gonna die I want to see him!"

"He's not going to die, Mr Urie -" the doctor began, but Brendon just cut him off.

"That's what you think - I want to see him now!"

"Bren," I said, my voice shaking, as I approached him. "c'mon."

"I want to see Ryan!" He dissolved into fresh tears, burying his face in my shoulder as he gripped my shirt. "I just want to see him! His parents are there - why can't I go in?"

"Just be patient, okay? You'll get to see him. I'll make sure of it." I sent a hard look towards the doctor, who nodded in understanding and walked through a door, which I guessed Ryan was behind. I glanced towards Gerard, and he came over, wrapping one arm around me and another around Brendon.

"I - I - I've never been so scared in my life..." He wept, and I soothingly ran a hand over his hair. "Please, Frank - please - just - please just tell me he's gonna be okay..."

"He's gonna be fine, Brendon." I said. "And I mean it. Ryan's strong, I'm sure he can fight anything."

At least ten minutes of listening to his sobbing passed, and then a doctor approached us. He beckoned us towards Ryan's room, and the three of us followed, Brendon clinging to my hand like a small child. He let out a whimper when he saw his fiancé, heading straight towards the chair on Ryan's right and taking his hand.

"Ry? Can you hear me?" Tears dripped down his face, and Gerard and I stood near the door, watching as he placed a kiss on the smaller boy's forehead. There were tubes and wires leading into Ryan's small frame, and it honestly hurt to see. He'd been doing well; what had happened?

"Yeah..." Ryan choked out, his eyes still closed. "I...I can hear y-you..."

"I love you. I love you so fucking much, Ryan -"

"Shut up, Bren." The ghost of a smile rose on his lips, and he took a deep, shaking breath. "You're going soft on me."

Brendon let out what was crossed between a sob and a laugh, as Ryan's parents, on his other side, smiled affectionately. "I could never go soft on you, baby."

Ryan's eyes opened, and his eyebrows rose. "Really? 'Oh my god Ryan I love you so much never leave me you're my one and only forever and always 'til death do us part blah blah blah' - that's going soft." It sounded like it was taking a huge amount of effort just to speak, and he had to keep pausing, taking huge breaths.

"If you die before the wedding so help me Frank -"

"I'm not gonna die, fool." His fiancé interrupted, at the same time I said, "Hey!" Ryan spotted Gerard and I, looking us up and down, and a smirk found its way onto his pale face. "I clearly dragged you two out of something important."

"That was his fault." I nodded towards Brendon, who flushed.

"I was scared!" He protested, and Ryan rolled his eyes.

"You idiot - you should know by now not to get scared because of me; I'm not going to die." He said, and Brendon raised his hand to his lips.

"I'm not taking that chance - I could lose you at any moment -"

"Don't." Ryan's tone was firm, his eyes hard. "I'm going to be okay."

They stared at each other for a few moments, until Brendon sighed, ducking his head and closing his eyes. Gerard slid an arm around my waist, and I leaned into him as Brendon muttered an apology.

Half an hour later, Gerard and I were back in his car, and I leaned forward, resting my forehead against the dashboard.

"You all right, sweetheart?" He asked softly, rubbing small circles on my shoulder.

"Mm-hm. At least, I think so. I don't know."

There was a pause. "Here."

I raised my head, looking at him, and he was holding out a lit cigarette for me. "Thanks." I said, taking a drag of it and rubbing my eyes.

He brushed some hair from my face, running his thumb underneath one of my eyes. "You look exhausted. I think there's a motel around here; wanna stay there tonight?"

"Have you got any money?"

"'Course I do." He tucked some hair behind my ear, seeing me glance towards the hospital. "C'mon, Frankie. Brendon said he'll text if anything happens. Ryan's gonna be fine." He pressed a light kiss against my lips, holding me close.

"They're my friends." I whispered, and he smiled sadly.

"I know, baby. But we're better off at a motel nearby, than worrying in a parking lot."

I sighed. "Okay. But only if you sleep naked this time, and hold me close. I like cuddling you."

He kissed my hand. "Anything for you, sugar."

So he drove to the nearest motel, and got us a double room for the night. The minute I got into the room, I made a beeline for the bed, flopping onto it face-first. I heard Gerard chuckle behind me, closing the door, and then there was weight beside me, and a hand stroking my hair.

"I love you so much, you know that, right?" He said, and I turned my head to face him, even though my hair was in my eyes.

"Don't you go all soft on me too." My eyebrows rose as I blew my hair from my face.

He just smiled, pushing my hair back from my eyes. "I mean it. I really fucking love you."

I grinned, my heart melting at his words. If someone had told me a year ago that I would be sent to Belleville High and while there, I'd fall in love with my art teacher, I would've laughed in their face. Cliché, but true.

"Take your clothes off and come lie with me, you lovestruck fool." I demanded, and he rolled his eyes before standing up.

I moved onto my back to watch him as he first pulled off his shirt, and then his sweatpants. He caught me and smirked, making a show of removing his underwear before crawling on the bed, hovering over me.

"You liked that, didn't you?" He murmured, and I smiled widely,

"Of course." I replied.

He rolled onto my left, lying on his side and slipping his hand up my shirt. I sat up so he could remove it, keeping eye-contact with him, even when he leaned over and pushed his lips against mine.

His hand was flat on my stomach, one of my arms wrapping around his neck and pulling him closer. His free hand tangled with mine as he kissed me harder, the hand that was on my stomach travelling to the waistband of my pajama pants. He broke the kiss a few minutes later, his eyes locking with mine.

"We're still alone tonight." He said, a smile creeping onto his face.

"I wonder if there are people in the rooms either side of this one." One of my eyebrows rose, and he laughed.

"I thought you just wanted to cuddle."

"We have some pretty intense cuddles sometimes."

His response was kissing me again, and I had to admit, that was kind of the response I was looking for.

~

Gerard's chest was warm. Gerard's chest was really warm. In fact, his entre body was warm. And it was comfy. Comfier than the damn bed - which is why I didn't appreciate him shaking me.

"Fuck off." I grumbled.

"Babe, Brendon texted." He said, and I groaned, peeling my eyes open.

He kissed me softly before I could speak. "What did he say?"

"Ryan's okay, he's gotta stay in hospital for the remainder of the week, and he's already complaining about not being able to sort out the flowers for his wedding."

I breathed a laugh, rolling onto my other side and pressing my back against his chest. "That sounds like Ryan."

"And he told Brendon to tell you to get on with your speech." He pressed kisses to the back of my shoulder, his arms around my waist. "You're slacking, young man."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Can I go back to sleep now?"

"No..." He trailed a finger down my spine, his hand flattening as it moved over my hip. "We need to go home and clean up before Bert questions why there's a lemon on the counter and a half-made mac and cheese in the pan."

"I'll tell him that the lemon was for your ass, and the mac and cheese was for my dinner." I shrugged, and he chuckled, his body flush against mine.

"You're a strange kid, Frank Iero."

"That's a bit rude."

He laughed. "Oh, man. I love you so much."

"I love you too, you ridiculous fuck."

A few hours later, we were back at his house, and Bert was sat on the couch eating cereal, even though it was mid-afternoon. He looked up when we walked in, clearly startled, his dark eyes widening.

He swallowed his mouthful quickly, almost choking. "Where did you go? I came home and you weren't here."

"Emergency trip to Jersey." Gerard said, sitting beside him. He looked up at me. "You sitting down?"

I shook my head. "I desperately need a shower. You might not notice it, but I'm certain I smell of semen and that damn motel room."

He laughed as Bert grimaced, and I headed upstairs, towards the bathroom. I closed the door and turned the shower on, picking out a black towel while I waited for the water to heat up.

My phone vibrated as I pulled my shirt off, and I checked it, seeing a text from Brendon.

Brendon: Ryan's now worrying that the venue won't be ready in time - I love him, but if he doesn't stop worrying about this wedding I might have to affectionately strangle him.

I laughed, checking the water was warm enough before hurriedly replying.

Me: I didn't know Ryan was into that stuff;)

I stripped of the rest of my clothes before stepping under the spray of water, sighing as the warmth hit me. It felt good to get the sweat and general filth off of me, washing myself with the products that Gerard had lying around. I knew that I could use everything that he owned every day for a month, but I would still never smell as good as him.

Getting out twenty minutes later - after taking my time for once - I wrapped a towel around my waist and checked my phone, seeing no texts. I opened the door and walked towards Gerard's room, pausing at the top of the stairs to eavesdrop on Bert and Gerard.

"Bert." Gerard said firmly, and Bert seemed to sigh.

There was nothing said after that, so I just rolled my eyes and entered Gerard's - our - room. I dried and dressed into pajamas as quick as I could, not wanting to leave Gerard and Bert alone together for longer than I had to. I didn't trust Bert in the slightest, especially not around my boyfriend.

"How was your shower?" Gerard asked, as I walked into the front room and perched on his lap.

"It was good, yeah." He wrapped his arms around my waist from the side, kissing my cheek. "I managed to get a quick one in, too." I made the action with my hand, grinning as I saw Bert's face twist in disgust. I was joking, but he didn't know that, did he?

Gerard, however, laughed. "You should've called me." He said quietly into my ear, and I bit my lower lip as his hand slipped between my legs, rubbing my inner thigh.

"You guys are gross." Bert muttered, concentrating on the TV.

"You should've expected it the minute Gerard told you I was moving in, dude." I shrugged, smirking, and he glanced at me briefly.

"I didn't think you'd be this bad. You're like the most sexually active couple I know."

"Is that a crime?"

"No, but..." He shifted uncomfortably. "It's just awkward."

Oh, if he thinks that that's awkward, maybe I should casually bring up the stockings that I know that Gerard has in his nightstand. And then suggest that Gerard wears them. In front of Bert.

That would be amusing.

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

It's not very long, but at least it's an update, amirite?

Next chapter is where it all starts, folks! I'm not gonna say what, but progress has been a little slow until now, but I have ideas for this, and they're gonna start rolling in soon xD

Thanks for all your votes and comments, I haven't been able to reply to them all but I promise I'm reading every single one and you all just crack me up sometimes, seriously I laugh so hard at some of the comments:')

Keep the kik messages coming guys, you're making me glad I got it xD

Thanks Pete, (experimenting with sign-offs, remember?)

-xocharr <3