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A month and a half. That’s how long Frank and Gerard had been together. It had been full of discovery and Frank found that Gerard was much like the ocean- very deep and drastically undiscovered. He was aware that there were things that the eccentric redhead was keeping from him, but he didn’t look at those things as being ‘secrets’ just undiscovered facts that were bound to be worth the wait.
Gerard would describe their time together so far as bright. It brought a certain amount of light to his life that he usually seemed to lack. And of course, Gerard wouldn’t be him if he hadn’t made some weird Shrek analogy.
“Sorry- what?”
“You remind me of an onion.” He stated simply.
“...Why?”
“Well- alright. Have you seen Shrek?”
“Yeah, Jamia’s kid loves that weird thing.”
“Okay, so you know how they compare each other to onions because of their layers?”
Frank waited for this to go somewhere that would either make him melt or cringe.
“You’re kinda like that because like, every time we talk I discover a new thing about you that I just- I love. And, the more we talk… the more I see your guard come down. So… I’m peeling the layers away.” Gerard looked rather proud of his mini monologue, concluding it with a tiny blush.
The younger of the two sighed and crawled over so he was on the other male’s hips, arms wound around Gerard’s neck. “You’re so fucking weird.” He giggled.
“Yeah…” The redhead rested his palms on his boyfriend’s hips and squeezed gently. “I know. But you love it.”
“Unfortunately, I do.”
“Aye, you signed up for this. Or should I say auditioned.”
“Oh, Jesus. I thought we let that go!” He had buried his face in the crook of the others neck.
“Oh darling, I’m never going to let that go.”
Frank sighed and mumbled a “Mmmph.” against the others flesh.
Gerard giggled. “Oh, that sounded very intelligent. Care to repeat it?”
“I said,” Frank groaned as he leaned back. “I think you should meet Jamia.”
At the mention if the name the redhead perked up. “Really?”
He gave a small nod as affirmation.
Jamia was Frank’s best friend. She was practically his sister. Her name was a word that had been thrown around in countless stories of his first few years out in New York, a constant character in his monologues about high school, and also happened to be the person that made Frank a bit more confident about their date.
From what he’d already learned, Jamia was the sweetest, most caring person that had been in Frank’s life and Gerard could not be more ecstatic to meet her.
“Like, yes. Oh my, god. When? Like next week?”
“Are you that excited to meet her?” Frank giggled.
The older of the two nodded eagerly, a gesture that made him giggle.
“Alright. Is uh- Is Friday night good?”
“Perfect.” Confirmed Gerard.
Frank leaned in and pecked the others mouth affectionately. “I’ll call her now.”
He dialed her number and waited patiently for the brunette to answer.
“Hey! Jamia!”
Gerard couldn’t hear the other side of the conversation, but when Frank said something along the lines of “Great, we’ll see ya then,” he was pretty sure the phone call ended in the decision to meet for dinner.
He came back to the couch and slouched into Gerard’s side. Instinctively, the redhead wrapped an arm around his boyfriend’s shoulders to somehow pull him in closer.
“What are we gonna do?” He mumbled against Frank’s hair.
“Well, I think it’s safe to assume that I’m not gonna cook.”
At that, Gerard flat out laughed.
“But, I was thinking we could go to that little coffee shop a few blocks away. How’s that sound?”
“You know I’ll never pass up coffee.”
“Yeah, I thought you’d like that.”
To avoid going home, which Gerard rarely wanted to do even though he lived not even five feet away, he suggested the pair watch a movie.
“Star Wars?”
“Of-fucking-course!” The younger of the two agreed, sliding over to the tv and slipping the disk in.
In all honesty, neither of them made it to the middle of the movie. Mostly because Gerard had found himself in a horizontal position with his head on the arm of the couch for comfort, and soon after the opening credits rolled, Frank had sprawled out on top of the slightly bigger male, occasionally kissing his chest or neck.
The way their breaths were coming and going at the same time was comforting and the feel of each others heart beat against their chests was a rhythm soothing enough to lull them to sleep.
It was Tuesday when Frank had called to tell Jamia about the coffee shop, which meant that as it was now Wednesday, Gerard had exactly two days to let his nerves get the best of him.
Wednesday passed by rather uneventful. The nerves were there, nestled in the back of his mind, but he could hardly tell. Drawing could easily take his mind off of anything he didn’t feel like feeling, and oh god, the curve of Frank’s back was enough to stop his thoughts completely.
His downfall, however, was probably the fact that he had stayed in his own bed that night.
Alone.
Without Frank.
His solitude helped his anxiety ridden thoughts finally scream at him at full volume. The voices had a habit of telling him the worst case scenario about basically everything he did. It was like nothing could go right if Gerard was thinking about it.
Though it took some time, four advil, a cup of decaffeinated coffee, and some “nature sounds” video to put him to sleep, he finally found it. Though he got more than he bargained for.
She was super nice. Very understanding and funny. The kind of person who could make even the most uncomfortable, socially awkward person open up. It was a trait that Gerard admired.
He was so glad that Frank had had this kind of positivity in his life.
Things were going very well, he had somehow managed to make her laugh and not just Frank.
The best part was that she leaned across the table to whisper something to Frank, but her whispering voice was more that whisper yelling and Gerard got to hear everything.
“He’s so sweet. I deeply approve.”
The words made the redhead’s heart constrict and fill with warmth.
His boyfriend’s best friend approved of him, how much better could this little outing get?
Not much better apparently.
Gerard had ordered another drink, ever the coffee addict, and strode up to get his steaming drink. On his way back, his feet took on a mind of their own and he stumbled forward. He watched in slow motion as the scalding hot liquid landed all over Jamia, burning her skin. Her screams of hot pain echoing through the coffee shop.
Gerard woke up sweating, his pajamas sticking to his skin. He cringed at the feeling and got up to change, the sounds of Jamia’s screams and Frank screeching abuses at him was echoing through his brain. The dream alone was enough to terrify him somehow even more than he already was.
Although he tried, the artist could not find it in him to fall back asleep. He heard his alarm go off as he was sitting at his tiny dining table, drinking his morning cup of coffee.
Singing always had a way of helping him take his mind off of things, and it sure helped him be introduced to Frank, so knowing that there was a possibility of waking his boyfriend up next year, he began a song that he was working on.
“And if your heart stops beating, I’ll be here wondering. Did you get what you deserve? The ending of your life.”
Gerard couldn’t tell if Frank had woken up, but he didn’t mind too much. If he’d heard, there was a nine of ten chance that he would try to catch him before he made it to the elevator and right now, in the aftermath of the nightmare, Gerard knew that he looked like hell on drugs.
Luckily, Frank wasn’t waiting for him out in the hallway. Although he did miss those shiny morning eyes that he tended to sport between the hours of 7:00 a.m to 11:30 a.m, Frank could pick up on the smallest disturbance in the other man's psyche and he really didn’t feel like explaining the nightmare.
Work, although it was really just standing in front of a counter and occasionally helping people find the first issue of a new comic they wanted to read, or maybe the newest development in the series they’d order, was particularly stressful.
Maybe it was the added stress of the events that the night had in store, but it seemed like the moment Gee got finished with one customer, three more would pop up, each more demanding more than the previous.
He minded, but didn’t mind all at the same time. At least there was something to take his mind off of meeting Jamia.
And the thing that sucked was that he really wanted to meet her! She sounded so amazing and exuberant whenever Frank spoke about her and he was on pins and needles to finally come in contact with her.
Maybe it was the need to be approved of, maybe he just wanted to be able to make everybody happy even though that was usually impossible, or maybe it was the fact that he truly cared about Frank and was in desperate need to gain Jamia’s trust and affection because she was the closest thing that he had to family.
Whatever the reason for his tumbling stomach was, he never really found out, but he found his way home. In the middle of his living room, Frank was curled up on the couch.
He raised his eyebrows as he slipped his coat on its hook. “And just what are you doing here?” He questioned playfully.
Frank sat up. “You think I can’t pick up on your nerves?”
The redhead looked down immediately, shuffling his feet. “I- Well- What gave it away?”
“It might have been your screams last night, it might have been the song this morning, it might have been the fact that I could hear you bumping around in here at balls o’clock in the morning. I don’t know though.”
He sighed and collapsed next to the younger man, wiggling into his lap. “I just really want her to like me…”
The brunette ran his fingers through the others hair, massaging his scalp slightly and tugging gently on the cascading red locks. “Why does it matter to you so much? I mean, I’m glad it does, but even if she doesn’t for some reason, that wouldn’t stop this.”
Gerard pushed into the touch. “I know, it’s just- She means so much to you, she’s your family and- I need her approval. I need it.”
“But why?”
“Because I love you!” He shouted without thinking.
Frank halted his movements and pulled back to look at his boyfriend. “You do?”
“You don’t… You don’t have to say it back because I know how early it is, but yeah. I do. I’ve never- I’ve never felt like this before. It’s just this warm feeling inside me all the time. And this… this emotion in my veins. I-”
“I love you, too.”
“Don’t just say it because I said it.”
Frank giggled and pressed his lips against Gerard’s. “I do. I mean it.”
The older of the two meant to say something else, but was at a loss for words.
“C’mon. Let’s get ready. I brought my clothes over.”
Frank had a way of looking stunning in really anything he wore. Like right now, he was wearing dark blue skinny jeans, a purple Morrissey shirt with black hoodie and leather jacket. He was fixing his hair in the bathroom mirror even though it was never going to do what he wanted.
“Stop,” Gerard giggled, kissing his forehead. “You look amazing.”
“As do you.”
He looked down. All black, except for the X-Men graphic on his t-shirt. He pulled his lips to the side. “Ehh..”
“Seriously!”
“Awe, you lie to me. How did I ever get so lucky?”
Frank leaned his body against Gee’s, melding his shape to conform to the other male’s. Then he wrapped his arms around his neck and leaned in closely.
“I believe the real question is: How did I get so lucky?”
“No, we aren’t gonna be one of those couples who does that whole ‘How did I get so lucky? No, how did I get so lucky?’”
“Why? We both think it.”
“True.”
Frank closed the space between then, locking their lips together in a moment of bliss and throwing away the key. They separated soundlessly.
“Now are you ready?” The shorter man giggled.
“As I’ll ever be.”
They walked into the coffee shop and Frank was at ease. Gerard, however, had turned into a waterbender on the walk there as a result of his sweating palms. Every time Frank reached down to lace their fingers together he would offer a reassuring smile that the redhead pretended calmed his nerves.
“Jamia isn’t here yet. You wanna pick somewhere to sit?” Frank questioned, eyes sweeping over the bodies seated at the tables.
Gerard nodded, long, unkempt locks falling into his eyes. The shorter of the two reached up to brush the hair obscuring his view behind his ears.
“Would you calm down?”
The eldest shook his head and guided them to a table in the corner. He had his back to the door so the temptation to stare at the door was made impossible to give into.
Frank knew a lot of the things he could talk about that would put the young artist’s nerves at rest. They spoke about the new comic Gerard was reading, the character profile he’d been working on that he’d recently finished, the song he sang that morning. Basically art is what would calm his down.
They were on what kind of brush strokes were best for painting landscape and his anxiety was seemingly leaking out with each word spoken, and then he heard a voice.
“Hey, Frankie!” It was highish, but not shrill.
He froze, his eyes going wide enough to pop out of his skull.
“Jamia!” Frank stood and engulfed her in a hug. “Hey! This is-”
“Gerard, I’m guessing?”
The redhead nodded stupidly, his mouth hanging wide open.
She smiled a little and patted his hand. “I’m nervous, too. It’s alright.”
He offered her a weary smile and held his hand out to shake hers.
Jamia slid her messenger bag off and placed it in front of her on the table as she took a seat. Her and Frank started giggling about something but Gee didn’t hear what. He was too busy watching the friendship in front of him. It was beautiful, really. The only friendship he’d really ever had was his little brother Mikey, and Mikey’s best friend’s. But they didn’t really count.
Anxiety is great. Gerard could hear the sound of ice being crushed like the machine was in his head with each passing moment the sound of the liquid sloshing around in other people’s cups grew louder.He had to pull himself out of this situation.
They were at a coffee shop, why not actually get coffee.
“I’mgoingtogetadrink.” He said quickly, turning swiftly to slip off of his chair.
Gerard halted when his fingers became tangled with what felt like soft leather. He looked down to see that in his haste, he’d yanked Jamia’s purse with him and the contents of her bag were now scattered all over the floor.
“Oh, my god.” He mumbled as he dropped to the floor. “I- I’m really sorry. I’m just really-”
Jamia was on her knees too, picking up her things, checking her phone and breathing out a sigh of relief when she saw that the screen wasn’t damaged. Whatever confidence the redhead had prior to the incident, however, was shattered.
She held up the device. “It’s fine. That’s why they made cases.” She was smiling.
“I just wish that they made cases for my pride.” Gerard grumbled.
This made the woman giggle a little and touch her hands to his shoulder. “It’s alright.”
He dropped his eyes. “Do you guys want anything from the-” he gestured to the barista station. “-place?”
“You know what I want, right?” Frank questioned.
“‘Course. J-Jamia?”
“Nah, I’m alright. Thanks though.”
She’s probably worried that I’m going to spill them. Gerard thought to himself as he was handed the drinks.
He wouldn’t have dropped them if that guy left his dog outside whilst he ordered. But he didn’t.
The golden retriever, not use to all these people in this unknown place, launched forward with no particular. The no particular direction he took off in just happened to be a B-line for the up and coming artist.
He let out a high pitched shriek and stumbled forward, and against the table he’d been seated at moments ago.
The pain of the embarrassment he was suffering was in competition with the searing pain on his chest as the hot drink seeped through his shirt. For a second, he was unable to move. But then the true heat hit him.
He whined out and Frank immediately came to his aid, letting his boyfriend lull his head against his shoulder. His hands were rubbing up and down his back in a comforting fashion.
“Do you wanna go home?”
A nod.
The walk home was basically Frank with his arms around the taller man’s waist to keep him from running into ongoing traffic and walking under ladders that construction workers were using because “My luck is already bad enough, who cares if it gets a little worse?”
Gerard slumped down on Frank’s couch who tutted at him.
“Whaaat?” He whined.
The brunette leaned down and touched his hand to the other’s cheek. “You have coffee all over your shirt. Go shower. I have some of your clothes in my room.”
The steam of the shower suffocated a lot of his thoughts, snatching life away from them so that they could no longer torture their host. And the water was warm enough to make his flesh swell and turn a light shade of pink.
He stepped out and slid into his plaid pajama bottoms and a shirt of his that was drenched with the scent of Frank’s laundry detergent.
The artist trudged into his boyfriend’s living room and leaned his thighs against the armrest of the couch and stood there. The lack of motion caught Frank’s attention who shifted his attention from MTV’s Girlcode to the redhead looming at the opposite end of the sofa.
“What’s wrong?” He questioned.
The inquiry shocked Gerard so much that he gasped. “Were you- were you not in the same coffee shop?”
“I was.”
“Then did you not see any of the things that happened?”
Frank cocked his head to the side. “Are you talking about-”
“Dumping her purse all over the ground, spilling coffee everywhere. embarrassing you? Yes, Frank, that is what I’m talking about.”
The brunette laughed a little and patted the cushion next to him, signaling for his boyfriend to find a seat next to him.
Gerard padded over to the sofa and slumped down next to Frank, back against the others chest. The smaller of the two tangles his fingers in fiery red hair, stroking through it in an attempt to comfort the artist.
“You were nervous and that’s fine. Jamia understood.”
“No she didn’t. She probably hates me.” The tone in his voice made it sound like he was holding back tears.
“Hey,” Frank leaned the man in his lap back a little so that he could properly look at him. When their eyes locked Gerard couldn’t help the blush that settled on his cheeks, which Frank promptly took his hand to once he noticed the slight tint. “You were fine. Look, I’m not embarrassed, I’m not upset, and neither is Jamia.”
“You don’t know that.” The redhead mumbled.
Frank giggled at that and pecked his boyfriend’s lips. “But I do. I’ve known her much longer than you have and I can promise you two things; one: she loved you, and two: she is going to call her to make sure you’re okay any moment n-”
His monologue was interrupted by the sound of his ringtone.
Gee’s eyes shot to Frank’s who had leaned over the man in his lap to grab his phone off of the table.
“Hello? Oh, hey Jamia!”
Gerard stilled.
“No, he’s fine. I think he may be a little tender, but Gee’s good.” Frank kneed him lightly in the ribs.
“I’m glad. And uh-” Frank hesitated, looking at Gee for a moment before continuing his question. “What do you think about him? Do you-”
Like when Frank called to set up the meeting, Gerard couldn’t hear what Jamia was saying, but by the look in his eyes he could tell he’d gotten good marks.
When the phone was hung up, Gerard couldn’t contain himself anymore and asked, “So, what did she think of me?”
The brunette might have attempted to have a stern look that would make Gerard second guess everything, but even though he’d pulled his lips into a thin line the sparkle in his eyes were very evident. But nonetheless, he waited patiently and on edge for his report.
Finally, Frank broke out into giggles. “She loved you!”
His eyes lit up and he locked their lips together in a frenzy. Their teeth clanked together and no doubt blood was drawn, but fuck, Gerard didn’t care. Jamia liked him and at the moment, that was the best news he could’ve received.