Frerard is Real

--One Year Later--

"Internal conflicts are resolved?" Patrick asked.
The couples nodded. Jack smiled, "It took some time for every one of us but thanks to you, we'll all be okay."
Patrick smiled upon the couples in the room-he groaned, "WHERE IN THE HELL IS FRERARD?"

~
Frank's hand held onto Gerard's. He said softly, "You can do it. You've made your choice."
Gerard stared at his home door. Lindsey was on the other side of the door, waiting for Gerard to come home from his tour. Now that he was back, and in front of the door with his decision, he was hesitating. He thought he was ready to tell her, but his stomach was whirling widely inside, knocking his guts down into an eternal abyss. He lifted his fist toward the door and knocked softly. No longer than five seconds, the door swung open. A tall, short brunette haired woman with dark brown eyes smiled at Gerard, “Gerard.” She threw her body toward Gerard, Gerard reflexes took over as he grabbed her around the waist. He breathed in her scent, “I missed you.”
Lindsey cried a bit, “Me too.” She pulled away and gestured him inside, “Bandit is outside in the back yard.” She repeated, still happy to see the man she loves, “Come in, come in.” Gerard walked in, Frank was close behind. It hurt Frank that Lindsey didn’t even acknowledge his existence. He didn’t even get an eye glance out of her.
Lindsey called out through the open door, “Bandit! Honey! Daddy’s home-”
“Wait, wait,” Gerard led Lindsey away from the door, “I need to tell you my choice.”
Lindsey frowned, “Well, for now, just say hi to Bandit-”
“I will. But I really want to tell you that I will not leave you.”
Lindsey opened her mouth but Gerard cut her off, “Or Frank. Don’t you see? I can still be a father to Bandit and keep my relationship with Frank. We don’t need to tell anyone, Lindsey. Yes, you can move on to a different man, and yes you can fall in love all over again, but we can still remain a family.”
Lindsey frowned, “Frerard is staying a secret?”
“For now. Who knows, maybe tomorrow we’ll tell the world-or in a week, or in a month-we’re not sure yet.” He smiled, “Lindsey, no matter what-you’ll be the one who I will cherish for the rest of my entire life.” He pulled her in and planted a kiss onto her lips. He felt her kiss back, but she pulled away. She smirked, “I’ve always shipped you guys anyway.”
Bandit ran inside, "Daddy!" She screamed as she jumped into his open arms. Gerard kissed her cheek-a soft vibration came from his back pocket. He pulled out his phone and groaned, "Damn Frank, we're late."

~

Patrick looked at his watch, “Ten minutes late.”
Alan smiled, “You always over exaggerate.”
“I heard they went to see Lindsey.”
Patrick quickly said, “What? When? Ohmygod we have to get there-I need to see what happened-”
The large doors opened. Gerard shook his head, “No, no, no, we’re here.”
“Well, what happened?” Patrick asked, getting his pen ready.
Gerard smiled, “A happy ending.”
Patrick smiled. He turned his attention to the other couples, “I’ve done well-I really have.” Patrick placed his notepad into his shoulder bag and tucked away his pen, “I guess this is goodbye.”
Alex chuckled, “Okay, sure, it’s goodbye for our counselor Mr. Stump, but what about our friend Patrick?”
The Stump smiled, “I'll always be here for you guys. As a counselor and friend.”
“Wait, before you go, what did you mean by “Frerard Is Real?’”
Patrick smiled at Gerard, “Just...Frerard is real.” He laughed.
Gerard rolled his eyes, “Wow. Such words.”
Patrick laughed. He winked, “The Stump is out of here. Maybe one day we’ll have another session.” He grinned, "But for now, I have to make my way to a dinner date with my wife." He winked before rushing out through the back door.
Austin stood up, "I can't believe it's over." Alan grabbed Austin's hand, "who knows, maybe we'll have more conflicts in the future."
Vic sighed, "Any one up for a drink?"
Jaime replied, "But not too much."
Vic shrugged, "It's for celebration."
Alan rolled his eyes, "We all know how you get when you drink."
Vic raised his brow, "And how do I get? you seem to know a lot about me, Alan. Go ahead and tell me more."
Alex stepped in, "Alright, calm down guys."
Alan argued, "Seriously Victor, calm down."
"Hey don't call me by my full name, okay?"
Frerard stood awkwardly in the sidelines. Frank whispered, "We should leave before we get caught up in this."
"...wanna go home and fuck?"
"That sounds amazing." Frank grinned. The two held hand in hand as they left the room full of a couple on couple fighting. As for Patrick, his Stump senses kicked in. The car came to a sudden stop and made an immediate U turn. He chuckled, "Maybe it's not over."

Notes