A/N: If there are errors, I'm so sorry, I literally can't fucking see because I have pink eye lmao. I needed a cheer up.

Derek burst into a raucous fit of laughter as Frank tumbled out of the Uber and onto the cobbled driveway. Frank huffed and ignored the stinging in his palms and the heavy swirling in his head as he tried to turn himself onto his back and untangle his foot from the seatbelt that had caught him.

Derek leaned over despite the chuckles still hiccuping in his throat and tried to help Frank get himself loose. Frank kicked himself from the afflicting belt and scrambled back and onto his feet where he staggered on the spot. He was about to collapse yet again when Derek caught him just in time.

"Easy, partner." Derek snickered, "Your face and the pavement are gonna have a reunion if you don't get your shit together."

Frank cackled breathily as Derek heaved him onto his feet and carried him up the driveway, "I really like that sweater you got on."

"You live here?"

Frank laughed again in response and ambled up to the front of the beautiful house. He pressed the doorbell incessantly, beeping under his breath every time he finger-blasted the soft chiming alert. The door opened a moment later to reveal the Congressman in question, dressed in a pair of plaid pajama pants to match the robe he had thrown on over an old Stevie Nicks t-shirt. He raised an eyebrow at the two drunken men on his doorstep and folded his arms, "Gentlemen. To what do I owe this unexpected pleasure?"

Derek chuckled and patted Frank on the shoulder, "He gave the Uber driver your address, Gerard. Sorry."

Gerard smiled at the swaying office manager on his porch and looked at Frank, "I see you're both rather warm inside. Enjoy your evening?"

"We all did. You hired one great kid here." Derek pulled Frank under his arm to give him a noogie to the top of his head that had Frank yelping and scrambling to get free. He laughed as he managed to pry himself from Derek's arm and aimed a playful kick toward his new friend.

"I'm very glad you approve, Mr. Zanetti. You should get going. I bet your Lindsey is wondering where you've gotten to."

"Yeah. Yeah." Derek nodded and put his hand on Frank's shoulder, "C-C'mon, man. We gotta get home."

Gerard smiled as he took Derek's hand from Frank, "Don't worry about him. I was actually going out in a few minutes to see my brother after a show so I can drop him off on my way."

Derek grinned automatically, "Oh, shit. Cool. Thanks, boss. I'll see you..." he frowned as he tried to remember what day it was, "See you when I see you."

Gerard smiled as he put both hands on Frank's shoulders to give him a soft squeeze and hold him upright. Frank put his hand on Derek's bearded cheek, "I-I love you, man. You're so... Cool."

Derek's eyes soften and he copies Frank's hand motion, cupping his smooth cheek with a thick-fingered hand and He patted Frank's face rather roughly, "Love you, too, man. Thanks for being so cool. You... You better stay with us. You're in the family now."

Derek gave them both a rather unstable salute before he wandered back down the driveway and managed to climb on his hands and knees into the back of the Uber. He threw Frank's satchel out of the door unceremoniously with a curse under his breath. Frank managed to scramble back down the cobbled pathway to grab his bag and come back in one piece. Gerard stepped aside to let his submissive into the house and Frank was already taking off his shoes to try and kick them nearby the door.

He turned with a hazy grin and wrapped his arms around his Master, happy to be home and finally hug Gerard after a long day. He instinctively nuzzled his face against Gerard's chest to take in his scent and his warmth; the action made a silent chuckle leave Gerard as he put his arms around Frank's tiny frame.

"I'm very glad that you're home safe, my boy."

Frank merely hummed in response and curled himself against Gerard with his cheek rubbing overt the soft material of his Master's t-shirt. He closed his eyes, mesmerized by the patterns swirling behind his eyes. Frank immediately leaned up to give Gerard a kiss on the cheek before he wiggled from his Dominant's arms to shred himself from his blazer. He hung it from the back of the nearby armchair as well as his tie.

He hummed to himself, his brain only remembered one song and one song only: the theme song from Lizzie McGuire. He sang to himself quietly as he unbuttoned his shirt and shrugged it from his shoulders haphazardly and threw it in the pile. He was about to unfasten his work pants when a hand on his shoulder cut him off. He turned to look at Gerard with a pout and was met with a highly amused smirk.

"Are you at all aware that my wife is sitting about two feet from you?"

Frank looked up with hazy eyes to see Lindsey curled up on the sofa in a bright yellow silk kimono with her hair up and a cup of tea in her hands. She gave Frank a small finger-wave with her long red nails and he instantly went pink, "Hi, wife."

"Hi, second wife." She remarked snidely and sipped her tea, "I hear you went out with your new work friends?"

Gerard chuckled as he patted Frank's shoulder before he went to sit on the other end of the sofa with Lindsey and occupy himself with watching the news on the TV in silence.

Frank unfastened his belt and nodded idly, "Did. With all of 'em. 'Cept Josh. He's with, um, with Ty, right?"

Gerard nodded, "He's probably going to be with him every night for the next week or two. A trial period, I suppose. Ty is very particular of the type of submissives with which he surrounds himself."

Lindsey smiled sympathetically at the mention of their pink-haired employee and while Frank was frowning at the zipper on his slacks, she gave Gerard's arm an affectionate and almost-understanding squeeze. He patted her hand gently but didn't say anything on the situation as he watched the screen.

Frank managed to shuck himself out of his work pants and, without a second thought to anyone else, pulled his underwear down along with it. He threw the offending garments onto the chair and, wearing nothing but his collar and a pair of over-the-knee socks he had bought during his lunch break on a whim, he ambled into the kitchen. Gerard stared after him in surprise and gave Lindsey a highly-apologetic glance as Frank began scavenging for God knows what.

He got up from the sofa again and walked over to sit at the counter, "Frank?"

The submissive's eyes popped up at the mention of his name. He stared up at his Master, "Hmm...?"

"What, uh... What exactly are you doing?" Gerard queried casually as he sat there and leaned forward on his elbows to rest his chin on his fist.

Frank stood up with a lopsided grin and set a bowl on the counter, "'M gonna m... Make somethin'. Bake. Make and bake and shake and bake. 'Cept I-I don't shake. Or do I? I could, uh, shake."

"At one in the morning?"

Frank looked at the clock hazily and tried to blink his gaze into focus. It backfired. He looked at his Master's blonde hair and his pale skin and smiled cheerfully, "Oh, yeah. Al-Always time to bake apple Danish. Apple Danish. Daaaay-nish. 'S a weird word, isn't it? Danish-nish-nish. Not a word anymore."

Gerard tried to hide the smile on his face as he played along with his inebriated submissive, "Should you be operating completely naked when you're going to be working with an oven?"

Frank paused for a minute and a frown sunk into his brows at a snail's pace. He looked at Gerard, "W-What do I do? I don't wanna get... Get an ouch."

He chuckled quietly and pointed with a long finger towards the bottom drawer where Frank crouched down and pulled on a simple white apron. He smiled at himself proudly and continued trying to slice apples. Gerard shook his head, "No. That's it. That's where I draw the line. No knives."

He hopped off the chair and walked around the counter to pry the blade from Frank's hand. Frank's pout was immeasurable across his entire face. He stared at the pile of green apples, "B-But I always make apple danish-nish-nishes when I've been out. It... It's my mama's tradition. Nishes."

Gerard stared at him and then looked at Lindsey for help. She looked back at them both and took a sip of her tea, "Well, why don't you help him, dear? Why don't you cut the apples?"

Frank gasped loudly and looked up at Gerard's suddenly perturbed face, "Really? You'll help? We've... We've never cooked together before. Will you? P-Please, sir?"

Gerard gave Lindsey a rueful side-glance to which she merely smiled back sweetly and turned the TV channel from CNN to her reruns of Melrose Place. Gerard sighed and turned to look at Frank, "Alright, fine. How do I do this?"

Frank grinned so excitedly and stifled a hiccup behind his hand, "I-In half and then in quarters and then sl-slice thin."

Gerard merely sighed and waved him off as he walked into the living room and grabbed Frank's underwear. He handed them to Frank again before physically helping the submissive back into them. He patted the boy on the head as he began rolling out the pastry onto a baking sheet. Gerard turned to start cutting the apples and subtly gave Lindsey the finger when he saw her smiling at him again with a knowing glint in her eye. She merely pursed her lips to say nothing and turned back to the TV, "Frank?"

"Oh-huh?" He turned and stumbled a little when he heard his name and looked at Lindsey with a frown as he cut the pastry in half, and then into rectangles with surprisingly straight lines.

She eyed Gerard again and was met with a suspicious little scowl, and then looked at Frank again as she sipped her tea, "You know, Gerard's never cooked with any of his previous submissives before. He's rarely ever in the kitchen."

Gerard pursed his lips in annoyance as he continued to cut the apples. Frank stared at her and at Gerard over and over as if they were playing a tennis match. His jaw was slack in surprise and yet he couldn't find the right words to reply except for, "That's so dope."

Gerard snorted quietly as he set one of the sliced apples aside and went to slice the other. Lindsey smiled a little and looked at her husband, "You hear that, darling? You're 'dope'."

"And you're dead, sweetheart." He smiled at her with feigned affection as he cut into an apple and threw her a withering scowl. Frank wrapped his arms around Gerard to give him a hug from behind, smiling so broadly against his Master's back.

"Don't leave your sugar unattended, my boy. You don't want it to burn." Gerard added as he continued his diligent duty of assisting. Frank nodded and went back to his little pot and added in some cinnamon and a splash of water.

Once Gerard had finished, he helped Frank by sliding the slices into the pot and stood back to watch him stir on low heat, "What do we do now?"

"Now..." Frank mumbled, "W-Wait for them to soften. And I gotta, um... M-Melt some butter."

Gerard went to the fridge and grabbed the butter and cut off a small stick, "This much enough?" And with Frank's approval, he put the butter in a ramekin and into the microwave. Gerard returned to his perch beside Frank to watch him stir in a daze and began spooning the mixture onto one half of each piece of pastry. He cleared his throat, "Can I assist with anything else, my prince?"

Frank looked at him for a second before scraping the last of the apple filling onto the last piece of dough. He smiled happily, "H-Here. Come fold, sir."

Gerard stepped closer, "Oh, I don't know if I should be trusted with something like that. I'm a novice."

Frank snorted, "Can't get better if you don't practice, sir."

"Alright. Show me." Gerard came closer and watched as Frank folded the pastry over and pressed the edges down with a fork and then took a knife to cut two slits into the top. He looked at Gerard, who scratched his head, "How about you do that and I brush on the butter?"

Frank pursed his lips and let out a small giggle as he continued his skilled pastry-folding. Gerard stood behind him with his head leaning down on Frank's shoulder and followed patiently; as Frank finished a pastry, he would lightly brush over the dough with the melted butter.

When it was finished, Frank carefully managed to slide the sheet into the oven and close the door without burning himself. He turned and stumbled a little and cackled quietly when Gerard caught him. The Dominant shook his head and gave Frank a cup coffee, "How you survived that entire endeavor unscathed is beyond me."

Frank sipped his coffee and closed his eyes, basking in the feeling of his Master's arms around him, "Practice."

Gerard merely put his chin on Frank's head and held him in comfortable silence before asking, "How long do those bake for?"

"Fif... Fifteen."

"Minutes, I hope." Gerard whispered with a chuckle. Frank pulled his apron off and set it on the counter and turned so that he was facing his Dominant, resting his ear right on his Master's chest. He listened to the steady thumping of his heartbeat, the in and out and innate calmness that could easily put Frank to sleep where he stood.

After a few minutes, Frank found himself sitting on the counter with Gerard between his knees, his face buried in his Master's neck as they embraced each other in their silence. Frank closed his eyes, whining when the world felt like it was swirling around him and speeding passed him like a bullet train. Gerard shushed him gently and stroked a hand over his back in gentle circles.

"Wanna watch a movie." Frank whispered as he played with the hem of Gerard's nightgown.

"Not tonight, my prince. You have work in the morning and it's already half-one. It's way past your bedtime as it is." Gerard replied calmly.

"Don't wanna go to work tomorrow. Wanna stay home with you. Wanna cuddle all day. Can we?" Frank asked with a hopeful glimmer to his voice that Gerard hated to break.

"We can. But not tomorrow. Tomorrow is a busy day for us both." He replied as he ran a hand through Frank's hair, "I have a meeting with Hochi on our investment portfolio for next quarter and you, my porcelain prince, have to catch up on the backlog of all the filing that still needs to be digitized. I'd like to at least be able to say, by the end of the year, that we've completely cut down our paper usage to a bare minimum."

Frank merely nodded in response as Gerard's words all seemed to slur together in his head, "Fine. No cuddles tomorrow. Can I have a danish before bed?"

"Won't it make you feel sicker?"

Frank shakes his head, "Anything greasy or sugary helps. My hangover cure is literally hashbrowns dipped in butter and a Fanta orange."

Gerard pursed his lips in disdain, "I'm glad you don't drink very often because I think that alone will put you in an early grave."

Frank smiled sleepily and leaned over to switch the oven timer off as it rang out in its usual shrill quartet throughout the kitchen and living room. He was about to hop off the counter when Gerard turned, grabbed an oven mitt, and pulled the tray out for him to set it on the stovetop. He smiled at the confectionery and at Frank, "Well done, my boy. They look wonderful."

Lindsey was immediately there in the kitchen. She grabbed one with her bare hand somehow and put it on a plate before she ascended the stairs so gracefully while she stuffed her face. Gerard chuckled softly and put one on a plate for Frank and went to the fridge. He returned with a small scoop of Frank's mascarpone ice cream dolloped on top and walked into the living room.

He sat down on the sofa against the cushions and set the plate on the armrest before patting his lap. Frank smiled as he sat across Gerard's lap, his back against the armrest with his legs curled up over his Master's lean thighs. He offered a bite of his midnight snack to his Dominant, who politely declined and looked at the TV.

Frank ate slowly, enjoying the gentle caress of manicured fingers on his spine as he watched a News reporter talking on the screen about a local pharmacy that burned down. He frowned and grabbed the remote and gave it to Gerard, "Can we have something a little less... I dunno, less 'Debbie Downer' before bed?"

Gerard flipped through the channels and stopped on a cooking show. He looked at Frank, who smiled a little and sat back to suck on the spoon in his hand as he watched someone try and flambé a steak.

Gerard touched Frank's knee idly, "Where did these socks come from?"

Frank looked down at the soft ribbed material that encased his legs and his toes curled inwardly as a pink blush- not associated with his alcohol level- rose onto his cheeks, "O-Oh. I... I got 'em the other day on my... Uh, on my lunch break. Wanted to surprise you but I chickened out. D-Didn't know if you were into shit like this and didn't wanna... Look stupid."

He stared at the brown speckles of cinnamon in the filling of his pastry and it made his head swirl even more as he tried to pick out each spot with his eyes; focus on anything else other than his Dominant. Gerard ran a hand up Frank's calf and back down to circle a finger around his ankle bone gently, "Normally, no. I've never been one for these things since none of my previous partners ever felt the need for these kinds of clothing articles. But on you, my prince, I could definitely make an exception."

Frank smiled a little and took another bite of his snack as he curled and uncurled his toes against the side of the sofa seat-cushion, trying to bury his feet between the two. He turned to see Gerard staring up at him and his eyes widened, his mouth dropping into a small 'o' that looked so exceedingly innocent. Gerard smiled at him, "You get more and more breathtaking every day I'm with you."

Frank snorted as the blush spread down to his chest and made his ears warm. He looked at the TV, "Thank you, sir. In the nicest way possible, though, please shush."

Gerard chuckled, "I'm taking that as a suggestion and not an order because I know, even in your state, that you're not stupid enough to try and tell me what to do."

Frank smiled and nodded, "I may be dumb but I'm not stupid."

Frank set his plate aside once he was done with the ice cream and held the danish in his hand to nibble on it and stare absentmindedly at the screen. He could feel his eyes drying and his eyelids drooping but he tried to fight it. He blinked again lazily and snuggled himself against his Master's side as he chewed.

His eyes closed before he could even register what was going on. He could feel what was happening around him but his brain and his body were both too tired to fight it. He could feel Gerard pick him up gently and he could suddenly hear the silence of the TV being turned off, but he was already fast asleep before he was carried up the stairs.