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Description
Chapter Nine.

I’d lost count of how many pebbles I’d thrown against the wall. I wasn’t even aiming for the flowerpots anymore, I was merely throwing them to relieve some tension. Nearly the whole of lunchtime had passed and Frank was still nowhere to be seen. Of course he wasn’t actually in any of my classes and there was no guarantee he’d come out into the courtyard behind the cafeteria anyway. But I’d hoped he would. I dreaded to think what had happened to him if he wasn’t at school.

My suspicions were strengthened later when I saw Jason beating up some random kid by the lockers. That kid would have been Frank had he been here. I was almost sure of that.

I practically grabbed Mikey at the end of the day and then casually asked him if Frank had been in any of his classes.

Mikey shrugged, “He was supposed to be in History but he never showed up, I guess he’s sick or something.”

Mikey wandered onto the school bus and left me stood outside staring into space. What if he was hurt? What if he was so hurt he couldn’t even get to school? I shuddered at the thought and climbed onto the bus after Mikey. I decided not to ask him anymore questions in case it got him all suspicious about my reasons for asking.

The second we were through the front door I grabbed the phone book from under the coffee table and headed for my room. I didn’t really know why I was looking, Frank had only lived here for a month, it was unlikely that they were even listed in there. I flicked through to the ‘I’ section anyway, just in case. I didn’t even know how I knew what his surname was, I guessed Mikey must have said it at some point.

Disappointment flooded through me as I checked and rechecked the directory, only to find no Iero listed in there. I shut the book and flung it down onto my desk, considering my next move. I actually had no clue what to do. There was no way I could remember how to get back to Frank’s house, and even if I could I’d probably just end up getting him into trouble. I felt so useless. I just wanted to know that he was alright…that I’d got this all wrong and he was actually sat happily at home, listening to music or something. My gut told me that that was impossible though, that there was no way he was okay, and that there was nothing I could do about it. I must have sat there for hours mulling things over because before I knew it, my mom was telling me that dinner was ready.

I shuffled into our kitchen and sat down at the small table. Mikey was already there, halfway through his meal when I sat down.

“Long time no see, Gerard,” Mikey said and I dropped my fork on the table with a clatter, about ready to punch him.

“Gerard!” Our mother exclaimed, placing a hand on my arm to stop me doing something I’d regret, before turning to Mikey, “Michael, leave your brother alone.”

Mikey huffed and carried on with his food. I picked up my fork and started picking apart the potatoes. My stomach was churning with worry and I couldn’t force much down.

Our mother sighed as she cleared away the plates, mine only half eaten. I knew what she was going to say and three seconds later, as if by magic, those six annoying words spilled out of her mouth, “You should eat your greens, Gerard.”

Fuck the fucking greens.

“I’m not hungry,” I said simply and got up from my seat.

“They’ll make you strong and healthy!” she called before I could leave the room.

I ignored it and went back down to my room. Falling on top of my duvet, I pressed my face into the covers and placed my hands over my head, feeling stressed. I felt so out of character that I didn’t know what to do. How could I have gone from hating everyone to befriending some random boy within the space of a day? And then kissing said boy while he was vulnerable. I cursed under my breath and rolled over onto my back. Kissing. I’d never kissed anyone before in my life up until that moment the day before. Mikey always liked to tease me over the fact I’d never had a girlfriend and I always managed to convince myself that it wasn’t because I didn’t like girls, it was just because I hadn’t met the right girl. I believed it for the most part, but thanks to yesterday’s events I was seriously starting to doubt my own beliefs. Perhaps yesterday was just a one-off; something I just felt needed doing in the spur of the moment. It didn’t have to mean anything; it was just convenient in the situation.

I found my mind reliving the moment over and over again like a broken record, the way his lips had moved against mine, the way we were both so nervous with each other, the way he tasted like Strawberry Bootlaces…

Agh, my heart ached. I sat up in disgust at myself and decided that I’d just go to bed, regardless of the time. At least that would stop me thinking about it and/or worrying whether Frank was okay. I stripped down to my boxers and threw on a clean dark grey t-shirt, discarding my other clothes into a pile on the floor. Even that simple act reminded me of Frank and eventually I had to clamber out of bed again five minutes later to go throw them into the laundry basket.

At some point during the evening I drifted off to sleep, a Frank-less sleep I might add, allowing my mind to refresh itself for a few hours.

The sleep was short-lived however and I woke up suddenly a few hours later, feeling more wide-awake than I cared to at that moment in time. I stared over at my alarm clock on the side and the glowing numbers told me it was 11:35pm. I groaned and got up reluctantly, shivering at the chill of the room compared to the warmth of the bed. I quietly tiptoed up the stairs in the darkness, knowing fully well that mom and probably Mikey were long since asleep by now.

I had every intention of going to the kitchen to warm up some milk or something, anything to help me sleep, but I didn’t get that far. I nearly jumped out of my skin when there was a sharp knock at the front door. The fact the lights were off just made it a whole lot creepier.

I crept towards the door, wondering who the hell would be calling at nearly midnight. Once I reached the door, I grabbed a random book off the sideboard, prepared to use it as a weapon if needs be. I know what you’re thinking, a book is hardly a good weapon. But it was dark and I honestly thought it was unlikely there was an axe-wielding murderer knocking on the fucking door.

I unbolted it quickly and opened it a crack, peering out into the lamp-lit street outside. A cold breeze blew through the door and I was suddenly very aware that I was half naked and answering the front door to a stranger. The porch was too dark to see who it was, but I couldn’t even see the silhouetted outline of anyone. I pulled the door open further and stuck my head out, “Hello?” I called out. There was movement below on the porch step and I looked down to see someone sat looking back at me through the darkness, just as a small voice called out, “Gee?”

My heart leapt into the ceiling as I recognised the voice and now the outline of the figure that was standing in front of me. The book I was holding landed on the floor with a thud, luckily avoiding my feet.

“Thank fuck,” I cried out, jumping out onto the porch step, regardless of my bare feet, and flung my arms around a shivering Frank. The force knocked him backwards and I gripped hold of him tighter, so thoroughly relieved to see him. His head buried against my chest as his arms clung around my middle…and it was only then that I realised he was crying.

Description
Chapter Nine.

I’d lost count of how many pebbles I’d thrown against the wall. I wasn’t even aiming for the flowerpots anymore, I was merely throwing them to relieve some tension. Nearly the whole of lunchtime had passed and Frank was still nowhere to be seen. Of course he wasn’t actually in any of my classes and there was no guarantee he’d come out into the courtyard behind the cafeteria anyway. But I’d hoped he would. I dreaded to think what had happened to him if he wasn’t at school.

My suspicions were strengthened later when I saw Jason beating up some random kid by the lockers. That kid would have been Frank had he been here. I was almost sure of that.

I practically grabbed Mikey at the end of the day and then casually asked him if Frank had been in any of his classes.

Mikey shrugged, “He was supposed to be in History but he never showed up, I guess he’s sick or something.”

Mikey wandered onto the school bus and left me stood outside staring into space. What if he was hurt? What if he was so hurt he couldn’t even get to school? I shuddered at the thought and climbed onto the bus after Mikey. I decided not to ask him anymore questions in case it got him all suspicious about my reasons for asking.

The second we were through the front door I grabbed the phone book from under the coffee table and headed for my room. I didn’t really know why I was looking, Frank had only lived here for a month, it was unlikely that they were even listed in there. I flicked through to the ‘I’ section anyway, just in case. I didn’t even know how I knew what his surname was, I guessed Mikey must have said it at some point.

Disappointment flooded through me as I checked and rechecked the directory, only to find no Iero listed in there. I shut the book and flung it down onto my desk, considering my next move. I actually had no clue what to do. There was no way I could remember how to get back to Frank’s house, and even if I could I’d probably just end up getting him into trouble. I felt so useless. I just wanted to know that he was alright…that I’d got this all wrong and he was actually sat happily at home, listening to music or something. My gut told me that that was impossible though, that there was no way he was okay, and that there was nothing I could do about it. I must have sat there for hours mulling things over because before I knew it, my mom was telling me that dinner was ready.

I shuffled into our kitchen and sat down at the small table. Mikey was already there, halfway through his meal when I sat down.

“Long time no see, Gerard,” Mikey said and I dropped my fork on the table with a clatter, about ready to punch him.

“Gerard!” Our mother exclaimed, placing a hand on my arm to stop me doing something I’d regret, before turning to Mikey, “Michael, leave your brother alone.”

Mikey huffed and carried on with his food. I picked up my fork and started picking apart the potatoes. My stomach was churning with worry and I couldn’t force much down.

Our mother sighed as she cleared away the plates, mine only half eaten. I knew what she was going to say and three seconds later, as if by magic, those six annoying words spilled out of her mouth, “You should eat your greens, Gerard.”

Fuck the fucking greens.

“I’m not hungry,” I said simply and got up from my seat.

“They’ll make you strong and healthy!” she called before I could leave the room.

I ignored it and went back down to my room. Falling on top of my duvet, I pressed my face into the covers and placed my hands over my head, feeling stressed. I felt so out of character that I didn’t know what to do. How could I have gone from hating everyone to befriending some random boy within the space of a day? And then kissing said boy while he was vulnerable. I cursed under my breath and rolled over onto my back. Kissing. I’d never kissed anyone before in my life up until that moment the day before. Mikey always liked to tease me over the fact I’d never had a girlfriend and I always managed to convince myself that it wasn’t because I didn’t like girls, it was just because I hadn’t met the right girl. I believed it for the most part, but thanks to yesterday’s events I was seriously starting to doubt my own beliefs. Perhaps yesterday was just a one-off; something I just felt needed doing in the spur of the moment. It didn’t have to mean anything; it was just convenient in the situation.

I found my mind reliving the moment over and over again like a broken record, the way his lips had moved against mine, the way we were both so nervous with each other, the way he tasted like Strawberry Bootlaces…

Agh, my heart ached. I sat up in disgust at myself and decided that I’d just go to bed, regardless of the time. At least that would stop me thinking about it and/or worrying whether Frank was okay. I stripped down to my boxers and threw on a clean dark grey t-shirt, discarding my other clothes into a pile on the floor. Even that simple act reminded me of Frank and eventually I had to clamber out of bed again five minutes later to go throw them into the laundry basket.

At some point during the evening I drifted off to sleep, a Frank-less sleep I might add, allowing my mind to refresh itself for a few hours.

The sleep was short-lived however and I woke up suddenly a few hours later, feeling more wide-awake than I cared to at that moment in time. I stared over at my alarm clock on the side and the glowing numbers told me it was 11:35pm. I groaned and got up reluctantly, shivering at the chill of the room compared to the warmth of the bed. I quietly tiptoed up the stairs in the darkness, knowing fully well that mom and probably Mikey were long since asleep by now.

I had every intention of going to the kitchen to warm up some milk or something, anything to help me sleep, but I didn’t get that far. I nearly jumped out of my skin when there was a sharp knock at the front door. The fact the lights were off just made it a whole lot creepier.

I crept towards the door, wondering who the hell would be calling at nearly midnight. Once I reached the door, I grabbed a random book off the sideboard, prepared to use it as a weapon if needs be. I know what you’re thinking, a book is hardly a good weapon. But it was dark and I honestly thought it was unlikely there was an axe-wielding murderer knocking on the fucking door.

I unbolted it quickly and opened it a crack, peering out into the lamp-lit street outside. A cold breeze blew through the door and I was suddenly very aware that I was half naked and answering the front door to a stranger. The porch was too dark to see who it was, but I couldn’t even see the silhouetted outline of anyone. I pulled the door open further and stuck my head out, “Hello?” I called out. There was movement below on the porch step and I looked down to see someone sat looking back at me through the darkness, just as a small voice called out, “Gee?”

My heart leapt into the ceiling as I recognised the voice and now the outline of the figure that was standing in front of me. The book I was holding landed on the floor with a thud, luckily avoiding my feet.

“Thank fuck,” I cried out, jumping out onto the porch step, regardless of my bare feet, and flung my arms around a shivering Frank. The force knocked him backwards and I gripped hold of him tighter, so thoroughly relieved to see him. His head buried against my chest as his arms clung around my middle…and it was only then that I realised he was crying.