April 13th, Tuesday
"Bastards!"
Christina and Barry Way jolted in their seats, wearing matching expressions of confusion and slight offense. A short boy stormed into the room, an angry twig-on-legs stomping in behind him.
"How the hell could you do this?! He's you son!"
The Way's stood, fear clear in their eyes. "What do you mean?" asked Barry hesitantly.
"I mean the boy sitting in the basement, recovering from a panic attack, or whatever the hell that was. I know what you did," growled Frank, grabbing Barry by the collar of his dress shirt and yanking him down about two feet. "Do you not realize that Gerard is human too?"
Christi pried her husband out of the tattooed boy's powerful grip. "He's not our son," she barked, glaring in the direction of the basement. Word to the wise: don't glare at the floor when saying something about your son; you look fucking crazy. "The tile's not my son!" Yeah, fuckin' crazy.
Thank you for that, Narrator.
Just helping the cause.
"How could you say that?!" fumed Mikey, taking a stance beside his friend. "I have an older brother, and you never let me meet him because he has a severe psychological disorder? Where the fuck do you get off, keeping a child prisoner in a basement for fourteen years?"
"I am not that young." The group turned to see Gerard lumbering in, squinting, with Harriet by his side, smiling gently. "Hello, Them. Frank, Mikey." His face unscrewed itself as he looked around. "It has changed a lot since I was last here."
Mikey leaned over and nudged Frank shoulder. "'Them'?"
"Yeah, haven't you noticed that he never refers to them as 'Mom' and 'Dad'?"
The tallest boy nodded in understanding. 'Them' looked shocked and appalled at the appearance of their eldest son. "Harriet!" Christi squealed, "What are you doing?!"
"I'm doing what should have been done years ago," said the French maid.
Gerard's eyes saddened as he looked at her. Her son in France won't be getting here anytime soon, at this rate. Poor kid. "Sorry, Ms.Harriet."
"Don't apologize, Mr.Way; I'm sorry I didn't call them sooner."
Everyone froze in their places. "Called who?" asked Barry cautiously, sliding towards the window and lifting the curtain slightly.
Sirens cut through the tense silence.
"Who else?" she asked innocently, gaining a smirk from the two boys. Gerard shuffled up beside his friends, grinning at them. He was still clutching what Frank realized was a black hoodie.
"How's your first taste of freedom?" Frank asked as the Way parents skitted around in a panicked haste, eyes wide and money in hand. "Mikey, do your parents not trust banks?"
"Do crazy people ever do?"
Gerard glanced around again in thought, looking at the only open window in the room. "It is a bit hot," he finally replied.
The two boys beside him laughed. "You have been living an icebox, Gee," Mikey said, hugging his brother. Frank beamed at the siblings, a warm feeling filling his gut as he watched Gerard's fascinated eyes wander over the room and finally land on him. He held his arms out for Frank, beckoning him into a hug. He complied and and smiled into Gerard's chest.
"Where will we be staying now?" Gerard wondered after a moment, still refusing to let Frank go.
The smothered answered in a muffled voice, "With a family friend, of course."
Gerard may have been a naive teenager, but he knew what his friend was implying.
The boys watched their parents get stuffed into the back of separate police cars, Gerard from the grass he had planted himself in the moment he stepped outside. He had rolled around in it for a few minutes before hand, gaining grass stains on his pale skin and giggles from his friends. Mikey stood next to his brother's sitting figure, frowning at his parents as they begged and pleaded to be released, cursing Harriet and Frank loudly after many failed attempts at escape. So much for going down with dignity.
Juliet showed up before the cops started taking their statements, rushing over and engulfing her son in a hug, babbling about being worried and asking what the fuck he did this time and etc. Frank just grinned at her pointed to the brothers. She looked extremely confused when she saw the boy in black with grass stains all over his face and I-stood-behind-an-air-boat hair.
"Mom, meet Gerard, the Way's oldest son. Gerard, meet my mom, Juliet," Frank said, hefting Gerard up so he could shake the ex-marine's hand.
She, understandably, still looked befuddled. "I don't remember meeting you, Gerard," said the woman, frowning at the boy and he grinned cheekily.
"I should hope not," Frank chuckled, "He's been 'dead' for fourteen years."
At her surprised expression, Gerard built on that. "I was in the basement because I am a loon," he said. Frank sighed and put an arm around the taller boy's shoulders.
"Because Gerard is only seventeen, they need somewhere to live until they can inherit the house and fortune. Can they--"
"Of course!" Juliet didn't even let her son finish. She was already in love with Gerard's innocent eyes and sweet smile. She grabbed the boy into a hug and squished his head to her chest, shaking him happily. "Stay as long as you need to, hun! I'll enroll you in school and set you up in any room you wish. You too, Mikey. You have a home as long as we're around."
Mikey thanked her and Gerard grunted into her chest, windmilling his arms in a desperate attempt to fee himself from her iron grip.
"Mom," Frank giggled, "I think you're suffocating him."
Suffocating.
The officers finally took their statements. Gerard told them the entire story and made sure to mention that he didn't want to press charges on Harriet or any of the other staff. The officers informed him, that in the likely event that he wins the trial, his parents would be stripped of their estate and the eldest child would inherit it when they were of age. Gerard had smiled at Mikey and nodded.
When the now-larger family arrived at the Iero household, the brothers were shown to their rooms. Despite the fact Gerard had spent the majority of his life in one, he took the basement. "It is what I know," he said with a shrug before flopping onto the bed and laughing when he flew up, but groaning when he bounced into the wall.
Mikey took a room upstairs with Frank, getting his own bathroom. When they all sat at the table for dinner, Gerard was beaming at the novelty of it. When they all went to bed that first night, Frank had pulled Gerard aside and kissed him.
Right smack on the mouth.
Gerard wasn't sure how to respond, so he tried to kiss him back. Being someone who had never had a kiss, he failed horribly, but Frank didn't really mind at all.
"Good night, Gee," cooed Frank, trailing his fingers down Gerard smiling face.
"'Night, Frank," he replied, hugging his friend (if he was that, anymore) tightly and sniffing him, just like the first time they met. The shorter boy found it more endearing than weird, now that he knew Gerard well.
Stop being cute, you lil' bastard.

Notes

Yeah, I'm on page three on the popularity list. You do realize that that fact made me the happiest person in my house, right? Doesn't matter that I'm home alone, I'm giddy.
Now, this is not the end of the story. Nope, not yet. It's just the end of dick-ish parents.
Thanks again to my loyal viewers. You guys are great.
Comment and subscribe and rate and shit.
-Stitches