*above picture is of Gerard when he catches sight of Frank*

Gerard felt the urge to punch himself in the face - or something - just to make sure he wasn't dreaming, and a pinch didn't seem enough of a shock to wake him up, but seriously - what were the odds that Frankie was actually here...standing right in front of Gerard.

Maybe Gerard had drunk so much that he had passed out, and this was all some trippy dream fabricated by his Frankie obsessed brain, or maybe somebody had spiked his drink, and he was hallucinating this. Those seemed like more reasonable explanations than Frankie just happening to walk outside at the very same moment that Gerard was passing by; hell - this could be an alien come to kidnap Gerard, and it had decided to take the form of Frankie because it knew that Gerard would trust her no matter what.

But when Gerard blinked his eyes numerous times, even giving his head a small shake for good measure, and Frankie didn't disappear, or fade away, or turn into a three eyed extraterrestrial creature, Gerard began to hope that maybe this wasn't some elaborate hoax his brain was playing on him, and he was actually getting the one thing he had always dreamed of - a chance to speak with Frankie.

Gerard almost called out her name, but he stopped himself before the syllables could escape his lips. Gerard knew enough about drag queens to know that they used different names on stage, but he had never actually talked to Frankie, so he had no idea what she went by when she dressed as a man.

Frankie coughed hoarsely, leaning against the door as she tried to catch her breath, and the soft sound snapped Gerard out of the immobile state his body had been trapped in ever since he had first laid eyes on Frankie, drawing all of his attention back to her so fast, Gerard almost got mental whiplash.

And before Gerard could stop himself, he was rushing over to her side, tearing his grey beanie off his head as he went, and it must have been the alcohol that made him so confident, because Gerard would never have approached Frankie if he was sober, but he didn't even think twice about his stupid decision in his rush to make sure Frankie was okay.

"Hey...um - you look cold, and you are supposed to keep your head covered when you are sick, so here," Gerard held up his hat with shaking hands. "I promise I don't have lice or anything gross like that," Gerard giggled nervously.

Gerard instantly wanted to smack himself in the face, because god - could he have come off looking any more creepy? Who the fuck offers someone the hat off their head...apparently Gerard does, but that was not the first impression he had been planning to make on Frankie, that was for sure.

"Boys - he's cool," Frankie rasped out, eyeing the bouncers who had stepped in front of Gerard threateningly.

"I'm sorry - I can leave," Gerard squeaked while backing up warily, but still holding the beanie out to Frankie with a pleading look on his face.

Gerard's brain was screaming at him to turn around and head home before he made an even bigger fool of himself in front of the person he had been crushing on for ages, or he got beat to a pulp by the doormen, but his feet weren't responding to his mind's frantic signals, they seemed frozen to the ground, and even though Gerard's breath was catching in his throat as he began to panic slightly, he couldn't move.

"I know you - you are the cutie that comes to every one of my shows," Frankie smiled weakly, pushing off from the door so she could step closer to Gerard and farther away from the men who were still shooting suspicious glances in Gerard's direction.

Gerard was about ninety-eight percent positive that his heart had stopped beating when Frankie's words sunk into his dense head, because fuck - she had called him cute - Gerard Way had just been complimented by the most gorgeous person in the world, and even though Gerard was pretty much ready to keel over and die happily with her husky voice ringing in his ears, he knew he had to respond soon before Frankie started to think he was a weirdo.

"Yeah - I love your voice, and your dancing, everything really," Gerard stumbled over his words, but at least he had formed a coherent sentence, and that was quite an accomplishment in his current state.

"Thank you - that's always nice to hear, and I'm flattered that you come see me so often -"

"Do you really think I'm cute?" Gerard blurted out, his cheeks instantly blushing when he realized what he had just said, but it was too late to take it back now.

"Of course I do, I wouldn't have said it if I didn't mean it, but as much as I would love to hang out with you for a bit...I need to get home - I feel like shit." Frankie smiled apologetically before she began walking down the street, and even though Gerard should have let her go like any normal person would do, he found himself following after her like a puppy trailing after its master, not getting the obvious hint that Frankie was in a hurry to be out of the elements as soon as possible.

"Wait - don't you want the hat?" Gerard asked again, still holding out the beanie pathetically.

"I don't want to take your hat honey, you will catch a cold, and then I would feel bad. I'm fine anyway, and with my shitty immune system, it wouldn't make much of a difference."

"Then...can I walk you home? You don't look too good, and I'm worried about you." Gerard almost face palmed himself when he realized how stalkerish he sounded, but Frankie didn't seem too freaked out.

"Really? Well - I mean...if you want to, I would like some company. I actually feel like I might pass out any second now," Frankie admitted guilty.

"Of course, I don't want you to be out on the streets alone and sick," Gerard nodded eagerly, tugging his hat down over Frankie's head before she could resist. Gerard had never noticed how short Frankie actually was, but without the heels, she was a few inches smaller than he was, and Gerard wasn't that tall at all.

"So is my escort going to tell me his name?" Frankie chuckled as she adjusted the beanie slightly so it covered her ears as well.

"I'm Gerard, and uh - I've kind of been wondering what your real name is too. I know your stage name of course, but - uh..." Gerard trailed off awkwardly.

"It's Frank, really original huh?" Frank chuckled.

"Frank," Gerard repeated quietly as he continued to walk beside Frank down the streets of New York.

Gerard really liked Frank's name, and not just because it sounded pleasant rolling off his tongue - which it did, but because it wasn't drastically different from Frankie. Gerard had always thought that Frankie's real name would be something else - like Charles, or Kyle maybe, but he was almost relived that it wasn't.

The fact that Frank had chosen a stage name so similar to his own made Gerard feel like maybe Frank and Frankie weren't two different people, instead, they were just two halves of a whole, two sides of a coin, and it made Gerard think that maybe Frank could be just as intriguing as Frankie.

"So do you walk all of the random strangers you meet home, or am I special?" Frankie - Frank - asked after a few moments of silence had passed, and Gerard jumped at her - his - words, much to his embarrassment.

"I - uh...no, but, fuck - I don't know. I have been to see you so often, I feel like I know you..." Gerard stammered out nervously.

"I'm not trying to be rude, honestly - I am actually really fucking happy you showed up when you did. You just don't see many people willing to do something nice for someone else for free - you know?" Frank ended on a wet cough, and Gerard winced in sympathy as the hoarse sound tore through Frank's small body.

"I - I want to say I'm just a sweet guy, but I'm not. I have actually wanted to talk to you for ages...so I'm really being kind of selfish right now to be honest," Gerard chuckled weakly, stepping closer to Frank ever so slightly when he began to sway on his feet.

"Why didn't you just come say hi after one of my shows? You know I am always happy to meet my fans," Frank asked.

"Um - I..." Gerard stumbled over his words as he tried to find a better explanation than 'I'm sort of in love with you, but I'm a shy awkward weirdo, and I tried a million times, but I always pussied out at the last second', but he was spared from thinking of a plausible lie when Frank suddenly doubled over, pressing one of his hands against a nearby wall while he threw up violently.

"Oh my god - are you okay?" Gerard squealed, even though it was really fucking obvious that Frank wasn't okay, most people puking their guts up wouldn't define themselves that way.

"Fuck..." Frank whined, sinking to his knees shakily once he was finished vomiting.

Not knowing what else to do, Gerard knelt down next to Frank, pulling the edges of his hair out of his face as he gagged softly for a few more seconds, producing nothing but spit and bile.

When Frank raised his head up slightly, Gerard was shocked by how terrible he looked. His skin was pale, and tinged with a slight green shade that had Gerard's own stomach twisting uncomfortably. Frank was sick - really sick, and Gerard needed to get him home before he froze to death.

"Hey...can you tell me your address? I'm gonna go hail us a cab - okay?" Gerard coaxed Frank into a more comfortable position, letting him lean against Gerard's body instead of the wall.

Gerard briefly marveled over the fact that Frank was this close to him, and he knew in any other situation, he would be freaking out like the fanboy he was, but his concern over Frank's wellbeing had overcome everything else, and Gerard barely even noticed the way Frank was pressed up against his side, or how nice he smelled, even after throwing up.

"No - 'm okay...I just live right there," Frank mumbled, pointing across the street with a shaky hand to a small apartment complex nestled snuggly beside a park.

"Right there?" Gerard double checked, to which Frank nodded weakly in response.

"Okay then...hold on," Gerard warned Frank before scooping him up in his arms, hooking his legs in the crook of his elbow easily while he regained his feet.

Frank squeaked quietly, but he didn't protest, and Gerard didn't really give him the chance to; he just started walking in the direction Frank had indicated, hoping that Frank would be able to tell him where to go once he was inside.

Gerard had no idea where this burst of confidence had come from; seriously - if the Gerard from three hours ago could see this Gerard, he wouldn't have believed it was the same person, because it almost wasn't.

Gerard had never been the type of guy who scooped people up and carried them home, he could barely even carry on a conversation half of the time, but Frank was changing him already, and he felt different around him - protective of him, and he would fight a fucking bear if it was for Frank, Gerard knew that much, so carrying him home wasn't really that big of a deal in comparison.

And as Gerard felt Frank sigh softly before snuggling his face into his chest, Gerard stopped worrying about how he was acting, or how weird this whole situation was, because it didn't matter. He was with Frankie, and even though this wasn't how he imagined their first conversation turning out, Gerard was floating on cloud nine as he walked down the sidewalk with Frank in his arms.

This had been his night after all, he had finally spoken with Frank, and not only that, but he was taking Frank to his house. For once in his life, Gerard wasn't doubting everything, or freaking out about every little nuance that popped up, he was simply doing, and Gerard realized that he should have grown the balls and talked to Frank ages ago, but better late than never right?

And if Gerard hadn't been freaking out in the club about Frank not noticing him, he wouldn't have left at the exact time that he had, which meant that Frank would have walked home alone, and he would have been all by himself throwing up in that alley.

Gerard knew it sounded stupid, but this seemed like fate, like he was destined to talk to Frank tonight, otherwise Frank would still be lying on the cold ground with no one there to pick him up, and Gerard was so grateful that he had been the one who was there for Frank when he needed him, and he would continue to be there for him as long as Frank wanted him around.

Heyyy I'm back.

Sorry about not updating this in ages. I had the other parts pre-written when I started the story, so it took me forever to write this. I have literally no free time lately, but I gave up a few hours of sleep to knock this out.

But now I really have to get to bed. Let me know what you think of this chapter, because I kind of feel like it sucks, but I am half asleep right now, so I really have no idea haha.

((((sleepy vibes))))

<3 starr