Chapter Text
“I just don’t get why we can’t just go into the city this weekend.” Gerard whined from his bed opposite Mikey’s. Nevermind the fact that neither he, Ray nor Mikey had the money for train tickets, food, or anything else to do with NYC. Nor the fact that they were all high schoolers.
“I mean, your parents are just being protective.” Ray pipes up from his seat on the floor by Gerard’s bed. Mikey feels so out of place right now, ever since Ray and Gerard presented their secondary genders - Gerard as an Alpha and Ray as an Omega - back when they started high school three years ago their friendship dynamics had changed. Before that, Mikey hadn’t cared much about joining their hangouts, if anything he’d avoid he and Gerard’s shared rooms until Ray went home or found something else to do. Gerard would even try to chase him out if he tried to stay, though Ray was nice enough to scold him and force him to be nice to Mikey.
Now though, their parents were a lot more hesitant to let Gerard have Ray over in his room, even if Mikey’s idiot of a brother didn’t get why. For an Alpha he was so clueless sometimes.
“We can handle ourselves.” Gerard protests, drawing Mikey back into his earlier whining. “I’ve been to New York plenty of times.” Mikey rolls his eyes, Gerard has never been to New York without their parents, and that’s not to mention being in the city with an unmated Omega.
He looks at Ray, as he’s been looking at him so much recently. Ever since Mikey presented - as a Beta much to his disappointment - he’s started to see Ray differently. He always liked him well enough, he was nice and cool - even though he was friends with Gerard. Even if he was always more Gerard’s friend than Mikey’s, he made an effort to include Mikey in things, offer him rides and save him a seat at lunch. Before he presented Mikey was content to just consider Ray a friend, but now when he looked at Ray’s soft skin, big eyes and full lips, he felt more than feelings of friendship.
He wanted Ray. He wanted Ray’s full attention on him. He wanted Ray to come and visit Mikey just to hang out with Mikey, not just say hi to him when he was over to see Gerard. Mikey knew that he couldn’t be jealous about it, Ray was Gerard’s friend and the two would probably end up together once his brother stopped being such an idiot and paid attention to the gorgeous Omega he had right in front of him. Still, Mikey was jealous of the way that Gerard had Ray.
“Maybe once we’re out of school.” Ray suggested, “We could go out this weekend, maybe go to the mall?”
Gerard groaned but nodded, “I guess. We do that all the time though.”
“Yeah, so we know that our parents won’t throw a fit about it.” Ray rolled his eyes, looking to Mikey as if to make fun of Gerard’s antics. Mikey has to avert his gaze. He hates how awkward he feels around Ray now that his feelings for the other boy have changed. It’s just Ray, Mikey’s known him for years, but now every time their eyes meet Mikey’s pulse picks up.
Ray would never want him. He’s a Beta, the only reason he’s still included in Ray and Gerard’s hang outs is because Ray’s mom thinks that Mikey’s presence will deter Gerard from making a move on her son. If only she knew that Mikey wanted to make a move on Ray all the same. How could he not? Ray was so sweet and he smelled amazing. Maybe it’s the jealous part of Mikey, but he thinks he could treat Ray right and make him happy. That would require Ray to actually look at him though.
They settle on the mall for that weekend, just like so many weekends before. Mikey honestly doesn’t really want to go, but he knows that if he doesn’t then Ray’s mom won’t let him go alone with Gerard. So Mikey will go, even if he has to suffer through seeing Gerard be so oblivious to how lucky he was to have Ray’s full attention. He can see that Ray is excited about the idea of going out with friends and wants to give him that. Ever since presenting he knows that the other boy has felt stifled by his family, all of his older brothers are Alpha’s and they don’t like the idea of their “baby” brother being in what they categorize as danger. Ray lost friends due to his family’s antics after presenting, and Gerard was one of the few Alpha friends that he was still able to spend time with, and so much of that was due to Mikey being there. So Mikey would go and be the buffer that Ray’s family needed to feel safe letting him leave the house.
Eventually it gets late enough that Ray’s older brother comes to pick him up, but he promises to see the others at school the next day. Mikey feels sad once he’s gone. His scent lingers around the room, reminding Mikey of what he wanted so much but couldn’t have.
“Hey.” Gerard says after a while of the room being quiet. He uses that tone he uses when he wants something. “Did you want to invite someone this weekend?”
Mikey looks up from his pillow to find Gerard’s eyes looking at him all wide and serious. “I’m sorry that you’re always stuck hanging around with me and Ray, but you know how his parents are.”
“I know.” Mikey sighs. “I don’t mind. Ray is cool.”
“Yeah, he’s the best.” Gerard laughs. It shouldn’t make Mikey feel as jealous as it does to hear Gerard say that. “But you can bring your friends too. I promise that I’ll be nice to them, and you know that Ray will be welcoming to whoever you bring.”
Mikey thinks about it. He does have a few friends outside of his brother and Ray, most of them already know Gerard though. Mikey considers himself something of a floater, he knows a lot of people but he’s not necessarily close to a ton of people.
There was Frank though, he was new to Mikey’s grade this year, but the two had hung out a few times and Frank was cool. Maybe if Mikey brought him, then he would have someone to talk to instead of just feeling down on himself and wishing that Ray would pay more attention to him.
“I’ll ask around.” Mikey says at last. “Thanks though.”
“No problem. I’m sorry that I don’t hang out with you one-on-one enough.” Gerard says, sounding genuinely sorry. It’s times like this when Mikey feels awful for being so bitter over his brother. Gerard really is a nice guy, he cares a lot and he’s got terrible social skills but he’s one of the best people that Mikey knows.
“I’m not mad. I like hanging out with Ray.” Mikey says, his face burns and he hopes that the lights are low enough that Gerard doesn't notice his blush. The last thing he needs is for his brother to catch onto his puppy-love crush on Ray.
They leave the conversation alone for the night, but the next day Mikey finds a time to ask Frank if he wants to go out after school on Friday. Currently it was Wednesday so he had plenty of time to decide if he wanted to.
“Sure man.” Frank said, “With your brother and his friend? I don’t think I’ve met either of them.”
Mikey shakes his head, “They’re upperclassmen, but they’re cool.” he takes a moment, knowing that the next thing he’s going to say is awkward, but he also knows that if Frank’s parents are anything like his they’re going to want to know, “My brother is an Alpha and Ray is an Omega, but I promise that neither of them are weird about it.”
“It’s cool.” Frank said, trying to play cool but the red on his cheeks made it clear that he was a bit embarrassed, “But thanks, my mom would 100% interrogate me on who I’m hanging out with. But since you’re there and this Ray guy is also an Omega she probably won’t freak.” Mikey nodded, he’d figured that since Frank was also an Omega his mom might be protective of him the same way that Ray’s family was. Luckily where they lived things were relatively safe, but there were always risks for young Omegas on their own. Mikey had witnessed some of the negative attitudes towards Omegas towards Ray when it was just the two of them. But when Gerard was there people more or less left them alone.
The next day Frank lets Mikey know that he can hang, and they make plans to walk back to Mikey’s house before leaving since Gerard and Ray had to stay late after school. The two of them would walk back together and then they’d all drive out to the mall. Mikey is more excited than he’s letting on at the thought that he’ll actually have someone to hang out with while Ray and Gerard are doing their “nerd shit” as he likes to put it.
Mikey lets Gerard and Ray know the next time he sees them, and they’re both cool with it so by the time school ends on Friday and he’s walking back to his place with Frank, Mikey is actually starting to feel pretty happy.
“So our room is kinda a mess. In my defense a lot of it is Gerard, he’s kinda scatterbrained.” He’s never felt embarrassed about having Ray over in his space, but Ray has also been friends with Gerard since they were in middle school and has seen Mikey and Gerard through so many awkward phases that it doesn’t feel weird for him to see their messy space. Mikey had tried his best to clean the room up as much as possible, but Gerard freaked out every time Mikey touched his stuff so he wasn’t able to fully clean the room. He just hopes it doesn’t freak Frank out too much.
Frank just shrugs, stuffing his hands further into his uniform blazer pockets, “Nah man it’s fine, you should see my room.” Mikey chuckles as he lets Frank into his house. His parents are still at work so they have the house to themselves. It’s been a long time since he’s had a friend that was just his friend over. He usually goes over to other people’s places. Still, he does his best to be a good host by offering Frank something to eat and drink and giving him the bathroom to change out of his uniform. Mikey changes in his room, throwing on a hoodie and jeans which were much more comfortable than his school uniform. Frank joins him when he’s done changing, it’s the first time Mikey has seen him out of his uniform and he has to admit that the striped shirt under a band tee and ripped jeans looked much more like him than the blazer and slacks of the uniform.
Frank isn’t shy to jump onto Mikey’s bed and lean against him, commenting “Man, your brother really is an Alpha isn’t he?” as he does.
“Sorry. I don’t really notice his stink anymore.” Mikey apologizes.
Frank shakes his head, “It’s not a bad smell, just noticeable.”
“Wanna read magazines or something?” Mikey suggests. They’ve got about 45 minutes before Ray’s done with band and Gerard is done with whatever nerdy club he was staying late for. By the time the other two get back and find them Mikey has swiped one of Gerard’s weird magazines and Frank is practically lying on his chest as they look at the photo spreads in the magazine.
“Hey guys, this is Frank.” Mikey introduces his friend, the two of them not untangling as Gerard and Ray enter the room.
Frank waves, giving them a lopsided smile, “Hey, I’m Frank.”
Gerard is being weird as always, not taking his eyes off of Frank and looking at him with wide eyes. It’s just Mikey’s luck that his brother is going to be a total weirdo the one time he brings a friend over.
“Frank, it’s great to meet you.” Ray says. Mikey might be imagining it but he thinks that the other boy's smile seems forced. “Gee and I just need to change and then we can head out.”
“Sounds good.” Frank smiles at him. “Mikey and I are cool here, this magazine is really cool Gerard.”
Hearing his name snaps Gerard out of the trance he’d been in. “oh. Uh. thanks?” he stammers, then upon looking further at the magazine, “Wait, Mikey were you digging through my things?”
Mikey shrugs as well as he can with the Frank sized weight on his chest. “We were bored. Go change so we can head out.”
“Fine, fine.” Gerard huffed, grabbing a bundle of clothes before leaving. “Ray, you can use our parents room if you want, I’m sure they won’t mind.”
“I can wait, it’s ok.” Ray smiles at Gerard, “Go change Gee.”
Gerard practically stumbles out of the room, Mikey doesn’t know what’s up with Gerard that he’s being so weird, but he hopes that he’s not too weird with Frank around. Frank is a weirdo, but the more time he spends with him, the more Mikey wants to hang out with him more.
“So.” Ray continues, his smile still seeming just as strained, “Mikey hasn’t told us much about you Frank, I didn’t realize you two were so close.”
“Oh, we weren’t really.” Frank says bluntly, “I’m just a touchy asshole and Mikey hasn’t stopped me yet.”
“Fuck off.” Mikey shoved at his head half-heartedly.
“You love it, don’t lie.” Frank smirked, snatching the magazine out of Mikey’s hand. “You even brought me your brother’s weird magazines, I think that means we’re besties.”
Ray’s smile falters, but before he can say anything Gerard is rushing back into the room. “I’m back, Ray, go change.” He says, sounding like he ran the whole way there.
Mikey rolls his eyes, “Don’t be such a weirdo Gerard.” he sighs. “You’re gonna scare Frank.”
Gerard’s eyes go wide, “Wait, am I scaring you? I’m sorry Frank, I promise I’m not mean.”
Frank stifles a laugh, but - in typical Frank fashion - he takes things further by burying his face into Mikey’s chest. “I’m so scared of the mean Alpha Mikey, don’t let him hurt me.”
Gerard stands in front of them, his mouth opening and shutting like a fish out of water while Ray stands in the doorway looking absolutely crestfallen in a way that Mikey doesn’t understand. Mikey just rolls his eyes, “Frank stop being such a freak.” He planted a hand on Frank’s forehead and pushed him away from his chest. “Gerard’s weird, but he’s not scary.”
“I’m not, I promise.” Gerard says again, his voice going squeaky. “Ray, tell him that I’m not scary.”
Ray sighs, “He’s really not. He can’t even fight.”
Frank cackles loudly, sitting up and waving a hand, “I know, I’m just messing with you.” He says, “You can go change, man. I’m excited for today, I haven’t gone to this mall yet.”
Ray nods, leaving the room for the bathroom.
“Wait, you’ve never been to the mall?” Gerard questioned like it was some kind of crime.
Frank rolls his eyes again, “I’m new in town, I’ve only been here for like 5 months. Mikey’s the first person from school to actually ask me to hang out. What was I supposed to do, hang out with my mom at the mall?”
Gerard’s eyebrows knit together, “Dude, you should hang out with us. We can show you all the best places in town.”
“Yeah, that might be nice.” Frank smiles genuinely. Mikey shouldn’t feel jealous about the way that Frank is getting along so well with his brother. He should be happy that his friend and Gerard are cool with each other. But he doesn’t like how interested his brother seems to be in Frank, and the way that Frank is showing so much attention to Gerard feels like all the times that Ray has preferred to hang out with Gerard over Mikey. It’s not quite the same, Mikey doesn’t feel anything more than friendship for Frank, but he can’t help the resentment at the fact that everyone always seems to like Gerard more once they meet him.
Soon enough Ray is back, dressed more comfortably. “Should we head out?” he asks, looking at the other three.
“Hell yeah!” Frank cheers, climbing off of Mikey so that he can stand on the floor.
“Cool, let’s head to the car.” Gerard says. Mikey tries to ignore the way that Gerard follows close behind Frank and chatters away to him the whole time they walk towards him and Mikey’s shared car. At least Ray is nice enough to hang back with Mikey as the other two leave them behind.
“So, Frank seems energetic.” Ray says softly.
“Yeah, he’s something.” Mikey admits, “He gets on well with Gerard though.”
“Yeah.” Ray sighs, sounding wistful. Mikey turns to him, Ray looks more upset than he’s used to in a way that makes his heart hurt for him. What’s upsetting him? Does he think that Frank is going to take Gerard from him?
Before Mikey can question it further, they’re at the car and Frank is dragging Mikey into the back seat and leaving the passenger to Ray. That only makes Ray look more upset, which is even more questionable to Mikey, but Frank is talking so much that he doesn’t have the energy to think more about it.