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It was raining outside.
The sky was a swirl of greys and the streets were temporarily stained a shade darker than their usual tint, the grass and the green leaves that decorated the trees looked ever-so-vibrant in their watery coating, and the only sounds filling the crisp air were the pitter-patter of the raindrops as they hit Earth.
Frank was watching it all through his bedroom's window, which was decorated with water droplets. He found the scene outside quite calming, and he had nothing better to do than enjoy it.
He had just woken up, after all.
He didn't know what time it was, and he couldn't quite remember what day it was either. He decided it didn't really matter though - it wasn't like he was ever planning on doing anything remotely important or productive. He preferred to lounge around and search up cute dog videos on the Internet, or in this case, appreciate the beauty of nature.
However, it wasn't long before his admiration of rainy days was interrupted by soft creaking sounds that came from behind him.
Frank immediately turned his head to face the door, which he had assumed was the source of the noise. He ended up being correct.
The white door was ajar, and an all-too-familiar head was poking between the doorframe and the door.
"Oh, I thought you were still asleep!" Gerard exclaimed quietly, his eyebrows raised slightly, as if he was surprised by the fact that Frank was indeed awake.
"Well, I'm up." The shorter of the two responded, a small smile on his lips as he looked up at his roommate.
Roommate.
Friend.
Lover?
Frank honestly didn't know what to call their relationship anymore. He didn't know if there was a word for what they were, though.
They kissed each other sometimes, and the kisses weren't the quick kinds of kisses. They were deep, and they were meaningful, and Frank had never enjoyed kissing someone as much as he enjoyed kissing Gerard. They also cuddled a lot when they were watching television, and on rare occasions they'd sleep in the same bed and spoon each other. Frank hated being the big spoon, but Gerard would always smile real big when Frank let him be the little spoon, and he thought Gerard's smile was one of the most adorable things in the world - so he would naturally let Gerard be the little spoon.
Frank loved doing things with Gerard, too. He loved going out and buying groceries with him, and he loved the cheesy food-related puns that Gerard would make. He loved helping him dye his hair, whether it was bright red, blonde or black. He loved making dinner with him, especially when Gerard would twirl around when he was navigating his way around their kitchen, and they'd both giggle over Gerard's ballerina-like dancing.
He swore that he loved Gerard, too. He had looked up the definition of love once to see if he really did. He remembered what Google said when he typed in "define love", word for word: an intense feeling of deep affection. Frank felt affection for Gerard - he loved every aspect of the older man's personality, he loved his quirks and his virtues, he loved the way Gerard talked out of one side of his mouth and how his pointed nose would crinkle up a bit when he was thinking really hard about something. It certainly was intense and deep affection, too. Frank would honestly die for Gerard.
If Frank didn't know any better, he'd call Gerard his boyfriend.
However, hadn't ever officially asked Gerard to be his boyfriend. Gerard had never asked him, either. Instead, they both went with the flow - escalating their relationship ever so slowly. Frank sometimes wondered if they'd ever get to the point where one of them would ask the other to date.
"You're staring."
Frank snapped back into reality at Gerard's sly-sounding comment, his mouth forming a small 'o' as he realized that he'd gotten lost in his thoughts while looking over at Gerard, who was wearing a slight smirk.
"Oh." He responded rather automatically.
"Oh?" He earned back from the (currently) bright red-haired boy, who's right eyebrow was raised a bit.
"Sorry." Frank apologized, moving his gaze from Gerard to the dark-brown floorboards.
Gerard just let out a slight chuckle that almost sounded like a giggle, and Frank thought it was a bit cute. Only a bit, though - at least, that's what he told himself.
"It's okay. Do you want breakfast?" Gerard asked, his head still poked through the doorframe and the door. Frank contemplated the question for a moment or two before answering with another question.
"Depends, what're you gonna make?"
"Your favourite."
Waffles.
A pleased smile spread across his face, and his hazel eyes seemed to light up a bit. He returned his gaze to Gerard, who gladly returned the smile, his small teeth peeking out from behind his lips.
"You're the best." Frank verbalized, his warm voice contrasting with the cool air that the weather conditions brought.
"I know," Gerard remarked jokingly as his playful grin grew seemingly larger, "I'll take that as a yes, then?"
"Of course, I can't turn waffles down!" Frank exclaimed, earning a giggle from Gerard that the shorter man could only describe as adorable.
With that, Gerard pulled away from the door and closed it. Frank listened to his soft footsteps heading to the kitchen until they faded out of earshot.
Frank decided that in the few minutes it would take Gerard to heat the frozen waffles in the toaster, he'd fix up his hair a bit. He pushed himself up off the edge of the end of his bed, and moseyed over to the mirror that was hung on the wall above his dresser. His ear-length dark brown hair was slightly unruly, and he smoothed it down a bit by raking his fingers through his short locks. He studied himself in the mirror, deciding that he looked presentable. He didn't want to change out of his pyjamas because he thought it would require too much work, so it was of course out of the question.
His sweatpants were comfy, anyways.
After a few more minutes of glancing in the mirror and shuffling idly around his bedroom, Frank heard Gerard's voice calling from the kitchen.
"Your waffles are ready!"
Frank briskly trotted out of his bedroom, through the living room and into the kitchen. He was first met with the scent of freshly toasted waffles, then with the sight of two waffles stacked on a plate, drizzled in maple syrup. After grabbing the plate up off of the counter-top, he headed over to their small dining room where he knew Gerard would be seated.
"Thanks for making these." Frank smiled joyfully as he entered the dining room, and sat down beside Gerard at the small table they ate at.
"It was only fair that I made you breakfast, after you so generously allowed me to watch Mean Girls." Gerard joked, a beaming smile plastered across his lips. His words earned a chuckle from Frank, who started to recall the prior night in his head.
***
They had both finished dinner already, and Frank was relaxing on the living room's couch, his eyes fixed on the TV. He was watching a new episode of The Walking Dead, which he had spent days binge-watching just so he could be up-to-date on the new season. He enjoyed the show, but however, Gerard did not. The taller of the two had been washing the dishes, but Gerard had finished faster than Frank had hoped, and he had soon emerged from the kitchen. Once he saw what Frank was watching, he let out a slightly exasperated sigh.
"I wanna watch something good." Gerard stated as he padded over to the sofa that Frank was seated on, and gently plopped onto it beside the brown-haired boy.
"Oh yeah? What do you have in mind?" Frank questioned with a small, slightly smug-looking smile, turning to look at Gerard, who was already looking over at him with big, hazel eyes. A warm and rather cute smile had spread across Gerard's thin lips, and the red-haired boy snuggled into Frank's side, pressing his face into Frank's neck. He had always did that when he wanted something - it was like he knew that he had Frank wrapped around his finger.
"Mean Girls."
Frank let out an automatic scoff, which earned him a poke in the stomach from Gerard. "Hey, it's better than your zombie show." Gerard argued as he tilted his head upwards to frown at Frank, who was shaking his head as if he was thinking 'I can't believe this guy'.
"It certainly is not." Frank responded to Gerard's comment, his gaze flicking from the television screen to the man curled up beside him. They might've been in the middle of a not-so-serious argument, but that didn't stop Frank from draping one of his tattooed arms around Gerard's shoulder, resting his hand on the other man's back. Gerard took Frank's action as an opportunity to snuggle closer to the shorter man, which he ended up doing.
"Come on, can we please watch it?" Gerard begged, his voice higher than before and a tad whiny. Frank peered down at him, which was rather difficult from the angle they both were at, and was met with Gerard's wide puppy-dog eyes and a saddening pout. The man was comparable to a five year old child who was begging his mother to buy him candy.
However, there was no way Frank could say no.
"Go get the DVD." Frank sighed out, turning his head back to face the TV, wanting to catch the last few moments of The Walking Dead before it would be interrupted by that damn Mean Girls movie.
Frank still really wanted to watch his show, but he decided that getting see Gerard's excited grins and hear his content "thank you"s made it all worth it.
***
"Are you gonna eat that?"
Once again, Frank was pulled back to reality by Gerard's voice. It only took the shorter boy one glance directed towards the table to notice that Gerard was finished around a third of his waffles, and Frank hadn't even touched his due to him recalling what had happened the night before.
He knew he really had to stop getting lost in his thoughts like that.
"Sorry, I was just thinking about something." Frank apologized as he quickly picked up his silver fork and started slicing a bit of his waffle onto it. He could see Gerard grinning a bit with both of his eyebrows raised.
"About me?"
Frank's hand stopped moving, and his attention fully turned to Gerard. How did the man know that he was thinking about him? Had he said something subconsciously about Gerard?
"How did you-"
"You were staring at me again, so I just assumed."
Frank thought Gerard looked a bit smug, but he knew that he could brush the topic off, so he acted quick.
"I was thinking about Mean Girls." Frank stated simply - it wasn't a lie per se, it just wasn't the whole truth.
"I thought the movie wasn't worth your time - but that's none of my business, I suppose." Gerard spoke with a self-satisfied grin, and Frank swore that if Gerard had made tea, he would've picked up the mug and slowly sipped it with raised eyebrows like that damn meme on the Internet.
"Shut up." Frank muttered as he tossed a slight eye-roll Gerard's way, and shoved a forkful of waffles in his mouth. Gerard just giggled a bit in return, continuing to eat his own waffles.
After several more minutes of jokes directed at each-other and pride-filled smirks that mostly came from Gerard, both of them had finished their breakfast. Gerard had gotten up after Frank told him he looked like a firetruck with his hair, and Gerard muttered something about that bring the "worst insult of the century" as he collected Frank's plate and stacked it on top of his to wash.
Frank chuckled a bit as Gerard talked to himself under his breath, and he watched as Gerard exited the dining area and entered the kitchen with his and Frank's plates and cutlery in his hands.
He decided that he'd follow Gerard over to the kitchen, and maybe help him wash the dishes.
That was his first mistake.
His second mistake was being so clumsy, and perhaps that wasn't entirely his fault, because he couldn't help himself from being a klutz.
Anyways, when he was getting up to head over the kitchen, he had accidentally stubbed his toe on one of the legs of the chairs at the table. Usually, Frank was great at handling pain, but he stubbed his smallest toe, and it really did hurt. A lot.
In fact, it hurt so much that he ended up stumbling a bit, and falling into the entry table that was pushed up against the wall of the dining room.
On that entry table happened to be a beautiful antique vase that Gerard's grandmother had given him a few months before she had passed away, along with several framed pictures of Frank, Gerard, and their families.
Frank didn't have time to even think about the vase or the photographs as he fell, though - everything was happening rather quickly, and before he knew it, a loud bang sound echoed through the room as Frank's side hit the entry table, and the sound of the vase and the glass from the picture frames shattering against the hardwood floors followed it up.
A sharp pain coursed through his torso, the center of it being the area on his side where he stumbled into the entry table. He hissed in pain and let out a string of cusses at how much the damn thing had hurt him, and before he knew it, Gerard was standing at the archway that separated the dining room and the kitchen. Frank could barely make out the expression he wore, but he quickly decided it was a mixture of shock and anger. The rather frightening look on Gerard's features faded away after a few moments, though, and it was replaced by a grim-looking one. Frank could tell that Gerard was trying his best not to freak out.
"That was my grandmother's." Gerard snarled with enragement quite evident in his voice, his eyes cold as he looked down at Frank, who was clutching his side with both of his hands.
"I-I know, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry - I didn't mean to break it, I-I'll buy a new one..." Frank stuttered, closing his eyes tightly as he accidentally squeezed his side too hard. He desperately wanted to sit down on the chair again, but he knew better than to move when he was surrounded by shards of glass and porcelain.
"You can't buy a new one, it was from my grandmother, Frank. It was special. Even if you could buy another one, you wouldn't have the money... All you do is sit around on the sofa, watching TV or using your laptop while I go out and work!" Gerard shouted, his voice having gradually raised as he spoke. Frank flinched ever so slightly when Gerard's voice got too loud - Gerard had never really yelled at him before, maybe once or twice, but that was it. Hearing Gerard yell was such a strange thing for Frank, and it scared him a bit. Frank didn't really know what to do, though - the situation wasn't something he was familiar with, and he wasn't sure if he should have shouted back or just begged for Gerard to forgive him.
He wasn't the type of person to give in easily though, so his first instinct was to fight back.
"Well, you could've told me you wanted me to get a job!" The shorter boy shot back, trying to sound as threatening as he could, which wasn't easy due to how much pain he was in.
"You wouldn't have done it anyways, you're too damn lazy! I'm the one that pays the bills, I'm the one that cleans up around the house, and I'm the one that makes you food! I do everything around here, and you do nothing!" Gerard screamed, his anger fully showing by that point. The frightened feeling that Frank had felt when Gerard raised his voice at him first had faded into aggressiveness - he thought that if Gerard expected more of him, Gerard should've told him so. Being lazy was in his nature, and he couldn't just stop being slothful. It wasn't that easy for him.
"You don't have to pay the bills, you don't have to clean up after me, and you don't have to cook for me! You can just kick me out, and force me to leave you be! Why haven't you done that, huh?" Frank bawled back, his voice furious. His dark eyebrows were furrowed together in anger, and he might have looked frightening if he wasn't hunched over and clutching his side, which still hurt.
"Maybe I will, then! Maybe I will kick you out!" Gerard responded, his voice loud and clear.
For a moment, the room was silent, with the exception of the huff-like breathing of the two of them.
That certainly wasn't the reaction that Frank was expecting. It was a bit silly of him not to see that coming, but he really thought Gerard would've said something like "because I love you" or "because I care about you" or something corny like that. He had really hoped that Gerard would've said that, too.
Frank decided that he'd pretend that he didn't care.
"Good, I never wanted to be your damn roommate anyways." He muttered back, a harsh bite to his words.
Now, that wasn't the response Gerard was expecting, but he was much better at concealing his emotions. Frank's words had hurt him a bit, but he wasn't about to show it anytime soon. There wasn't much more he could say, though, so he turned around with aggression and stomped back into the kitchen, muttering curses underneath his breath.
Frank didn't want to watch him walk away this time. Instead, he focused his eyes on the ground, studying the broken pieces of glass and porcelain.
It baffled him as to how him stubbing his toe had led to all that, and before he knew it, his eyes started stinging and a watery film glazed them over.
He had ruined everything with Gerard, just because he stubbed his damn toe.
As hot, salty tears began to roll down his cheek, he decided that his pinky toe deserved the pain it had gone through when he stubbed it.
He decided he hated his pinky toe.
***
It was a few hours after the vase incident, and Frank was curled up in his bed, his blanket pulled over him.
He had managed to navigate himself around the shards on the floor, then he had found a broom and a dustpan to sweep up the vase and picture frame debris. He knew Gerard would just get more cross with him if he left it all on the floor.
After cleaning up everything that was on the dining room's floor, he headed straight into his bedroom and slipped under the covers. He wanted to fall asleep again, but it was far too early for that, so all he could do was think.
He thought about how stupid it was for him to yell back at Gerard. He thought maybe, just maybe, if he had continued to apologize to the taller man, he would've forgiven him. He wondered how the rest of their conversation would've played out if he agreed to try and find a job, or if he didn't instigate the argument that led to Gerard telling Frank that he'd kick him out.
He didn't want to be kicked out by Gerard. The man was his best friend, and the last thing he wanted was for them to stop hanging out with each other. He loved Gerard, and he would miss him too much.
He would miss Gerard's cheesy puns and jokes, and he would miss how his hazel eyes lit up whenever Frank leaned in to kiss him. He'd miss raking his fingers through Gerard's thin hair when they were watching television together, and he'd miss how cute Gerard looked when he would get a bit irritated because Frank had left a sock on the ground.
He would miss Gerard.
He already missed Gerard.
What if Gerard never forgave him? He knew he messed up, breaking his grandmother's vase. He didn't even think it was about that anymore, though. He didn't even know that Gerard thought about things like Frank being lazy and not doing anything around their shared house. He kind of wished that Gerard would've told him how he felt about Frank's lack of a job so he could do something about it.
He decided that Gerard didn't tell him because Gerard didn't want to come off as rude - that was just like Gerard, too. He'd tease Frank about things and make jokes at his expense, but they never were serious. Gerard liked to be nice.
Frank let out a slight sigh as he continued to contemplate everything that had went down hours before. Although it didn't seem like hours to Frank - it only seemed like several minutes, maybe a half hour at most. That happened a lot when Frank would go deep into thought, though.
In fact, Frank was so deep in thought that he didn't even notice the creak of his bedroom door as it opened behind him. He didn't hear the oh-so-soft footsteps that were slowly approaching his bed, either.
He did notice his bed shifting under new weight, though. He didn't move, however - he continued to stare ahead of him at his spruce-coloured walls.
He knew who it was, after all. There was no need to check for reassurance.
All Frank expected was a short apology. He'd decline it - it would take more than that for him to forgive Gerard.
Frank didn't expect to feel Gerard to remove the blanket over Frank and press up against his back, though. He didn't expect to feel Gerard's arm drape over him, either.
He soon realized that Gerard was spooning Frank.
The taller boy's chest was pressed up against Frank's back, and his arm held Frank close. His legs were bent to fit perfectly behind Frank's already bent legs.
Frank didn't try to shrug Gerard off of him - he would never dream of it. Even though he was unhappy at everything that had occurred, he still enjoyed the comforting feeling that took over him whenever Gerard would cuddle with him.
"I'm sorry, Frank, I'm so sorry. I'd never kick you out, not ever. I shouldn't have got so angry at you, and I shouldn't have called you lazy. Everything I said was wrong, Frankie. Please believe me." Gerard whispered, his voice wavering slightly as if he was going to cry.
It certainly was better than the short apology that he had expected, but Frank knew that Gerard was lying when he said that everything he had told Frank before was wrong. Frank had thought about it before Gerard came, and he concluded that everything that Gerard said was true. Frank was unwilling to work, whether it was around the house or at a proper job. He preferred to lounge around and do things that didn't require very much energy, like browse the Internet. He had let Gerard do all the chores around the house, and he had let Gerard make money for both of them. He had only began to realize it when he had returned to his bedroom and started thinking about it, and he felt horrible for it.
"No, Gerard, you were right, I-"
Frank wanted to verbalize his thoughts, but he was abruptly interrupted by Gerard.
"Shut up."
Frank couldn't help but crack a soft smile, despite how much he wanted to apologize for being a slight burden. However, he opened his mouth to speak again as he leaned back into Gerard's chest and stomach.
"I promise I'll get a job. I'll actually do some work, and make my own money." Frank stated, and he felt Gerard's hand lightly squeeze his own.
That was Gerard's only response, along with the him pressing his lips to the back of Frank's head.
The two men wouldn't have even been cuddling in Frank's bed if it wasn't for Frank accidentally breaking Gerard's grandmother's vase. However, that whole affair was in the back of both of their minds. All that mattered in that moment was the warmth that they gave each other, and how content they made each other. Sure, they still both felt a little guilty for what had happened earlier, but they'd deal with jobs and housework another day.
Frank was admittedly a bit happier than he should've been, though, but what could he say?
Gerard had let him be the little spoon this time, after all.