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Frank didn’t expect Sweeny Todd to be a scary as it was, and it certainly wasn’t the smartest idea he’d had all year when he decided to watch it while he was in his headspace. He knew that if Daddy Gee had caught him watching it, he would’ve been in trouble, but he had waited to tell him that he was in headspace until long after the movie had ended. (This was another rule he had broken.)
Even as Daddy Gee asked him about his day while he got dressed for bed, Frank didn’t mention watching the movie, instead saying that he had watched Treasure Planet earlier that afternoon. He didn’t even tell him about it as he was read a story (A chapter out of Harry Potter and The Goblet Of Fire), even though the dimness of the room caused by the nightstand lamp made him a bit nervous.
“Is there anything you want before I turn off the lights, Frankie?” Gerard asked softly, sitting at the edge of Frank’s bed and running a hand comfortingly through his hair.
“Uhm, can I have a glass of juice, Daddy?” Frank asks, hoping that the nervousness didn’t show in his voice as he clutches his blankets close to himself.
“Sure thing. Stay right here, I’ll be back in a minute.”
Once Daddy Gee left the room, Frank’s eyes darted to the black stuffed rabbit that was sitting at the end of his bed with red eyes staring back at him. “You’re sleeping with me tonight, Bunny.” Frank whispers, leaning across the bed to grab at the rabbit and holding it against his chest once in possession.
Frank gently nibbled on his upper lip until Daddy Gee came back into the room moments later with a lidded cup of what he suspected was strawberry kiwi juice. “You’re going to bite your lips raw if you keep biting them like that. I wouldn’t be against asking Pete for a pacifier.” Gerard says, handing the cup to Frank and watching fondly as he drank from it.
“Pacifiers are for babies, and I’m not one like Patrick and Brendon are.” Frank grumbled in-between sips.
“I know that, Frankie. Doesn’t mean you can’t have at least one if you need it. I was only suggesting it.”
The issue of pacifiers had been a minor topic that they would talk about when Frank was outside of headspace, mostly because Gerard sometimes sucked on one when he was in an especially young headspace. Frank had said that he wouldn’t not do it, just that he probably wouldn’t want to in headspace.
Frank ignored Daddy Gee’s comment and finally put the now half-empty cup of juice on the nightstand, then looking up at him with wide eyes. “Is there a nightlight in here? Or one I don’t know about?” he asks, because he’s really going to have a hard time going to sleep if he’s in the dark.
“I don’t think we have one yet, sweetheart. We can go out and get one tomorrow if you really want one.”
“But Daddy, I really need one tonight!” Frank whines, dramatically leaning back into the pillow.
“I’m really sorry, Frankie. I could leave the door open and the hall light on if you need the light so badly. I’ll be in the den for a few hours so I won’t even notice it.” Gerard replies, chuckling at Frank’s dramatics as he stands up from the bed.
Frank agrees to that plan, even though he didn’t want to make Gerard work harder than he had to (Gerard would disagree with that statement if it had been said aloud), and Gerard kisses him goodnight before leaving the room with the door cracked open enough for a dim light to flood into half of the room.
Once Gerard has left the hall, Frank tries fitfully for another half hour to go to sleep, and he finally does. Only to have nightmares about the movie he saw.
He thinks he’s one of Mr. Todd’s victims, getting his throat slashed and his meat made for pies by Mrs. Lovett, and he’s so scared. It keeps repeating itself, though the scene might change; once, it was Daddy Gee who was getting made into a meat pie that he was forced to eat.
Frank only escapes the dream when he’s suddenly being shaken awake by Daddy Gee. That’s around the time he also notices that he’s…wet the bed as well. He starts to hyperventilate a bit, scrabbling away from the wet spot on the bed as well as Daddy Gee.
“Shh, shhh, Frank, its okay!” Gerard says calmly as he can, getting closer to Frank and pulling him close even though his clothes are soiled. “It was just a bad dream, and you had a little accident. I’ll clean you up and we can sleep in my room tonight.”
“I-I wet the bed though, D-D-Daddy.” Frank chokes out, now clinging onto Gerard like a lifeline as he’s led to the connecting bathroom.
“Little boys do that sometimes, it’s not your fault. Do you want me to undress you?”
Frank shakes his head roughly, quickly getting his clothes off with minimal struggle. Gerard grabs them from him as they’re thrown off and takes them to the washing machine in the hallway once he gets the sheets and blankets off of the bed. Before he returns, Frank is standing there in the bathroom, thumb halfway in his mouth.
Once Gerard returns, Frank is sitting on the floor, eyes focused on his lap where his unused hand lay.
“Hey, Frankie, it’s going to be okay. I’m here.” Gerard whispers, crouching down at his level and rubbing his arm as a reassurance.
“’our not mad?” Frank stammers quietly, barely looking up at Gerard over his fringe.
“Nope. Now let’s get you in the tub, I know you wanna get clean again, hmm?”
Gerard starts up the tub, Frank flinching when the thunder of the water starts next to him. It doesn’t take long at all for the tub to fill, and the bathroom is quiet except for the running of water. Gerard helps Frank into the tub, being careful not to make him slip in the water.
“Frank, baby, do you want to talk about the nightmare you had? You don’t have to if you don’t want to; I just thought it might…help.” Gerard asks as he gently runs a washcloth of soap over Frank’s body.
Frank stills for a moment, and Gerard thinks that he’s said the wrong thing and almost takes it back, but then he starts to speak. “I watched a scary movie ‘fore you came. It ‘cared me, Daddy.”
Gerard sighs and leans into the tub, touching noses with Frank. “I’m guessing you didn’t tell me cause you thought I’d be mad?”
Frank nods weakly, making full eye contact with Gerard for the first time that night. “Didn’t wanna be in trouble.”
“I have to admit that I would have liked if you had told me that you were scared, but I don’t mind that you saw that movie. But Frankie, please tell me next time you get this scared over anything at all. It’s not good for you to keep all of those nerves bundled up in your little body.”
Gerard then pulls the drain stopper out of the drain, marking that it was time for Frank to get out of the tub. He helps him out of the tub and into a towel once he’s shivering on the bathmat. Frank stays quiet the whole time, sticking the tip of his thumb into his mouth and staying close to Gerard even as they make their way down the hall to Gerard’s room where a new set of clothes is set out for him.
Gerard dresses Frank in the t-shirt and sweatpants he’d laid out, and gets him into the bed before joining beside him. “You know I still love you very much, right Frankie? Even if you did mess the bed?” he hums, wrapping his arms around Frank’s midsection.
“I know, Daddy. You’ll love me to the end of the universe and back.” Frank says softly, turning to look at Gerard, and his eyes look a little more brighter than they had earlier.
“I’m glad. Now, how about we both get back to that sleep we’re missing out on? “
Frank grunts in agreement, and burrows into Gerard’s chest as exhaustion finally takes over and he falls into a restful sleep with his Daddy.
End.