That was the last time I saw Frank Iero for eight years...

By the time I woke up, Frank had already been discharged from the hospital. Doctor Wentz delivered a note he had left in his room for me, and I never went anywhere without it.

I will spend the rest of my days and nights chasing tomorrow until I can be with you again

Stay strong for me

I love you

Not long after I received his letter, I was being released at well, but instead of going home, I found myself in the car with my mother - heading to Laurel Hills.

"How are you doing honey?" my mom broke the relative silence of the car with her casual question.

"Just fucking peachy..." I huffed out sarcastically.

"I know you don't want to be here, but it isn't for that long baby."

"That's really not what I'm worried about right now," I answered truthfully, but I didn't want to elaborate any further.

"Is it Frank?" she asked quietly.

"Huh?" I snapped my head around to look at her instead of staring out the window like I had been for the past hour.

"I know you two are dating sweetie, and it's okay." She smiled down at me as I tried to comprehend the fact that our relationship hadn't been as secret as I thought, not to mention the lack of reaction from my mother concerning my sexuality.

"How long have you known?" I worried my lower lip between my teeth anxiously.

"Well - I was always a bit suspicious, but it was after I talked to him at the hospital that I knew for sure."

"And you aren't mad?"

"No I'm not - I realize that he is young, but age isn't everything, even though some people seem to think it is. I can see the way he looks at you though, and I have nothing against your relationship - as long as you are being safe."

"Mom....we haven't even done anything!" My cheeks flamed red with embarrassment, this was not the conversation that I had been expecting to have today.

"Well I know you are a teenager, and those urges are going to come up eventually, so just remember -"

"Seriously mom - shut up. You already gave me the sex talk okay?" I groaned loudly.

"Well it's different with guys, and I wasn't aware that you were gay until recently, so I need to update it," she chuckled wryly.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner, I was just scared that you wouldn't approve of Frank - I should have said something though."

"It's okay baby, I understand that it is a big thing to reveal to anyone, but I don't want you to be afraid to tell me anything."

"I'll remember that."

"So how long have you two been together?"

"Almost four months now."

We continued to talk for the rest of the drive; I told her everything that I had previously kept hidden about Frank and I's relationship, including the fact that he was moving now, and she listened patiently throughout my entire story. She reassured me that Frank seemed to truly love me, and she said she would help us in any way she could until we were reunited again.

Before I knew it, the imposing gates of Laurel Hill's had appeared, swallowing up our car as we passed through them, and I was faced with the prisonlike building that would be my home for an undisclosed amount of time.

After getting me signed in, my mother kissed me goodbye with promises to visit with Mikey soon. I let the orderly - or whatever you call them here - lead me to my room, and I listened quietly as they walked me through my daily schedule, and what would be expected of me during my stay here.

They took all my personal possessions - including my clothes, leaving me with a plain white uniform which I already loathed. When they tried to take my note from Frank, I began screaming and kicking, desperate to keep this one piece of him with me.

Finally a doctor wearing a fedora came in and informed the man to just let me have it, in his words there wasn't much I could do to myself with a slip of paper. I gave him a grateful smile, and he nodded at me in return.

There wasn't much to say about my stay in Laurel Hills. It was a monotonous routine of eat, group therapy, school, rec time, eat, then sleep.

I wasn't exactly getting better, but I didn't get any worse either. I still had dark thoughts, but no way to act on them, and the thought of Frank's disappointment if I did kept me from searching for creative means to self-harm. I really did want to stop, especially if it meant I could get out of this hell hole that much quicker.

Two weeks came and went, and my psychiatrist - who ironically enough was Dr. Wentz's boyfriend, Dr. Stump - informed my mother that he hadn't seen enough improvement to be comfortable with releasing me. I thought I would be furious when I heard his proclamation, but I was just numb.

As much as I wanted to return home and be able to see Mikey again, it was so much less appealing without Frank next door. So I resigned myself to my fate and did my best to act how I thought a normal person would.

The only sliver of light in my boring existence was my daily phone call to Frank. My mom understood that I needed to talk with him, so she didn't begrudge me using it to call him instead of her.

Just hearing his voice brought a smile to my face, and even though we couldn't talk for long - I had a time limit and he had to be careful not to be caught by his mom - it was enough to sustain me.

I received occasional letters from him as well, but he had to get his aunt to mail them since his mother was still adamant that he had no contact with me. I treasured each one as if they were made of gold.

I wrote him every day since I had nothing else to do during rec time. Usually they consisted of random drawings and song lyrics I had thought up because I was terrible at "talking about my day" and I never had anything new to say anyway.

I was worried that his mother would notice the return address on them and freak out, but so far we had been lucky for once, and Frank begged me to keep sending them.

I lived for him alone, and for now, that was enough to keep me going.

Then tragedy struck - as it always does...I kept hoping that the universe was done trying to destroy me, but I should have known better.

It was just another day, and I was calling Frank, basically bouncing on my toes with excitement. About five minutes into our conversation, I heard scuffling, and then Frank's voice cut off abruptly as if he had pulled the phone away from his mouth.

"What mom?" I heard faintly through the receiver.

"No one! Just a friend okay? What the hell...let go!"

"Who is this?" A female voice cut through my worried thoughts, and I knew he had been found out. In a panic, I hung up, my breathing so ragged it seemed as if I had run a marathon.

The next day was agony...I counted down the minutes until my phone call, hoping that Frank had managed to give his mom a reasonable excuse as to who he was talking to.

But when I dialed his number from memory, it didn't ring like it normally did. Instead - I was met with a series of strange beeps before an automated voice chimed in.

"I'm sorry. The number you are trying to reach has been disconnected or is no longer in service. If you feel you have reached this recording in error, please check the number and try your call again."

Feeling numb and broken all at the same time - I hung the phone back up with shaking hands. My one connection to Frank had been severed completely, and I was adrift and alone.

A broken scream ripped its way out of my throat, and I thrust my fist against the unforgiving wall as hard as I could. I needed to feel some kind of physical pain to dull the emotional agony that was ripping me apart.

I faintly registered the sound of the door opening, and I knew I was no longer alone, but I couldn't seem to control my body. Cold hands encircled me, pinning my arms behind my back before dragging me away as I continued to scream.

Days passed, and then weeks, with still no call or letter from Frank. I didn't know how to keep going without him, and for a month, I was a lifeless shell, not speaking to anyone and refusing to move from my room.

I didn't eat, I barely slept, I just stared blanking at the wall and ignored everyone who tried to get me to do anything. I was trapped inside of my mind, and I couldn't seem to break free of the prison I had trapped myself in.

My mother and Mikey came to visit, but even they couldn't rouse me from my comatose state. The doctors were at their wit's end with me, but I couldn't bring myself to care about anything, half the time I didn't even notice their presence.

Then one day, I realized what I had to do...I had to get out of here so I could go find Frank. I made myself believe he was still alive and breathing, even though my mind did its best to convince me otherwise. I refused to let the idea take root though, because if something really had happened to Frank, I wouldn't be able to continue on.

I considered the fact that he had gotten tired of me, but he promised he would love me, and I wouldn't give up on him until he told me to my face that he didn't want me anymore.

I pulled out the now tattered note that carried the words I held inside my heart. Rereading the three sentences - which were more meaningful to me than a full length novel - fueled my determination to be free of this place, and the only way I was going to be released was if I made a real attempt to start living again.

So that's just what I did, I participated in group therapy, and opened up a bit to Dr. Stump. It took much longer than I thought it would, but six months after I was admitted to Laurel Hills, I was walking out of those gates - never to return.

School was over, and I had technically graduated since my high school had sent all of my work to me so I wouldn't fall behind. I had missed the ceremony, but I didn't really care about that. I was just ecstatic to be out in the real world once again.

Surprisingly - I was actually a much happier person; I still missed Frank like crazy, but the voices that plagued my mind had receded - for good I hoped, and I had been so long without alcohol that I didn't crave it like I used to.

Cigarettes were the only old habit I picked up again, it seemed that Mikey had started smoking when I was away, and instead of being a good brother and trying to get him to quit, I indulged in my addiction with him.

When I was released, I was giving back my cell phone, which was full of loving texts from Frank, all dating back to about five months ago. I had one voice mail from a number I didn't recognize, and I clicked on it nervously.

"Gee it's me...my mom took my phone, and she knows I was calling you. Fuck - she looked up the damn number, and I don't know what to do. I am using my aunt's house phone to call you right now, but I don't know how much longer I will be staying here. My mom is screaming at her right now...they are fighting because of me." His voice was thick with tears, and I had to hold back my own sobs.

"I can't stay in a house with a backstabbing bitch like you!" I could hear his mom yell from the other room, and I shuddered violently.

"Gee - I don't know what's going to happen, but never forget that I love you okay? I will find you...I promise, no matter how long it takes. Shit - I have to go, my mom's coming in here..."

Then it cut off abruptly, leaving me paralyzed and aching for Frank. I listened to it five times in a row, just so I could hear his voice again.

Once I had composed myself, I dialed Frank's aunt's phone number, hoping desperately that she had some idea where Frank was now. She informed me that her sister and Frank had moved away, and she wasn't quite sure where. Her sister was furious with her for helping Frank mail letters to me behind her back, and they hadn't spoken since. I apologized profusely, but she just brushed it off, saying it had been her pleasure.

Stuck at a dead end, I tried everything I could think of, but I couldn't unearth any mention of a Frank Iero anywhere, or Linda for that matter.

I yearned to find Frank, but I knew I had to be realistic and get a steady job first. Before long, I got hired at the local Barnes and Noble, and I was bringing in enough income that my mom never complained about the fact that I hadn't moved out yet.

I think she was just happy to have me home and in sound mind once again, and it was nice not having to be alone. I didn't think I was quite ready for that just yet.

I never gave up on Frank, but eventually I realized that my search was futile. At first - I called his disconnected number every day, but it was never back in service, and my countless hours on the internet trying to find any mention of him had never provided any results.

Not knowing what to do, I just continued living day by day, hoping that eventually the universe would take pity on me and send me a sign that the love of my life was still out there somewhere.

Time passed in the blink of an eye, and still Frank was permanently imprinted on my mind.

I continued to see Dr. Stump to make sure I would never relapse back into the person I used to be. I wanted to be the best version of myself for when I finally found Frank again, and it was working.

I was going to school for art, and I had finally moved out of my mother's house. Mikey lived with me for a while before shacking up with his boyfriend Ray, and the solitude didn't bother me as much as I thought it would.

Before I knew it, eight years had flown by with still no sign of Frank - not counting the sketches of his face that adorned my walls, but I never gave up...I would wait for Frank until the end of time.

So here is another super short chapter for you guys. I am kinda getting tired of this story, so I am trying to finish it before I lose interest completely.

I am so glad that you guys like it, and the fact that it has 4k+ reads is amazing, but I just feel like I basically used every cliché in the book, and I am not very proud of this.

I will finish it though, I am determined to, so don't worry, I won't leave you guys hanging.

<3 starr