Through the Centuries (First Anti-Frerard Fanfiction Ever!)
Black Death. 1348
hm… that was interesting… but i recall something….
Father says that it is sin that caused the plague. And that if we prayed hard enough… if we stayed indoors, we would be safe. That meant ignoring the screams. And pleas for help. That meant not leaving the house. Ever. Under no circumstances. That meant watching everyone die through barred windows. Everyone screaming and praying. Dying and begging God to stop this.
See, Father is a preacher. Every day, he sets out to the outside world to preach and comes back with the news. There are still people dying. No one has been spared by the plague. Maybe they didn’t pray hard enough. Or maybe… maybe it’s something else. Some people are saying it may be in the air. A...flying sickness… or a sort of vapor. Father hit me over the head when I suggested it. He handed me a rosary, told me to go to my room and did not speak to me for three days in a row.
One night… it was raining. Buckets. Cats and dogs. It was POURING. And I heard a knock on the door. Immediately, I stood up and went to it.
“FRANK. STEP AWAY FROM THE DOOR.”
I froze at my Father’s voice. My hand trembling on the knob. Someone was knocking furiously. And screaming. Screaming for help. Calling my name. MY name. G-Gerard…. From where do I know a….
School. That’s right. The old building I hadn’t been to in so long….He was the...boy that always sat in the back...
I blinked and there he was on the floor. Soaked and panting. Crying and screaming.And i was next to him. Hugging him... comforting him as he cried into my shoulder. Father grabbed me by the hair and lifted me off the floor. Gerard’s eyes were wide in terror.The tears fell limply as he took in the scene in front of him.
“M-MISTER IERO…. IM NOT SICK! I CAN PROVE IT!”
Father threw me back and I hit the wall. It hurt. But I knew better than to cry out. My mother was there immediately. She pulled me into her arms and began to pray. Father was analyzing Gerard. Looking him over.
Gerard was pale and trembling. His lips were a soft shade of blue…. But he held still under my Father’s inspection. It was then Mother took my arm and I was DRAGGED to my room and pushed inside. A soft ‘click’ as the door was locked.
Locked in my room. On my… own Birthday….
The tears came. On my own…. DAMMIT, WHY DID I EVEN OPEN THE DOOR?! Why didn’t I leave him outside?? If he was truly healthy, he would’ve lived until tomorrow! I could’ve just brought the plague into the house!
I prayed for about an hour. A soft sound. Father coming into my room. I lowered my head. He frowned, and then let out a soft smile.
“It’s for your safety, Frank. Don’t ever do anything like that again.”
I whimpered and nodded. He scooped me into his arms and hugged me. I looked up to see mother at the door with a small cake. Cake! I hadn’t had cake in forever! I hadn’t left this HOUSE in forever! Mother handed around small pieces of it and we ate silently. Then, Father made a speech about the importance of being thirteen years old. I nodded intently. Soon, it was time to go to sleep.
Father blessed me properly and checked my breathing. All fine. My mother told me, as she did every night, that if I ever felt sick, to come to their room.
They said goodbye and were about to leave when I spoke:
“What about Gerard?”
“What about him.”
“Won’t he get any cake?”
Mother and Father looked at each other.
“Sure, honey.” Mother said sweetly “I will take some to him before he goes to sleep.”
“Where is he staying?”
Mother looked at Father. Father answered.
“He is staying in the guest room. Now, Frank. The boy is tired and he will need rest. You are not to see him for a couple of weeks until he has fully recovered.”
I nodded to the floor and they closed the door. Soft murmurings in the hall. I got out of bed to listen, but they died down way before I got to the door.
Curiosity got the best of me. It was around midnight when I crawled out of bed. The floor was cold and I shivered slightly in my long night gown. Then, I began to make my way down the hall. The storm was still going on and every once in a while, there was a flash of lightning. I needed no candle to get to the guest room.
I knocked on the door softly.
"Come in." Said a weak voice.
I tried the door. Locked. I nearly turned back... but then I remembered that the keys were kept in the kitchen.
"Gerard," I whispered "the door is locked. I will go to the kitchen and get the keys."
"Yes." He said softly. His voice sounded so tired....
I tiptoed into the kitchen and opened the cabinet. A sound. I jumped and hid under the table. A few seconds later, i relaxed and pulled out the keys from the drawer.
In the dark, i could barely find my way back. I waited for a flash of lightning and was finally able to find the lock and slide the key in. A soft sound. The door creaked open.
Everything in the guest room was moved over. I could see Gerard sitting in the middle of the room. His head was down. A flash of lightning revealed the rest of the room to me. He was sitting inside a circle of salt... bound. His white skin had bruises on it and he was trembling slightly. Why...why would father do this.
"G-Gerar-"
"He says I'm sick..." he whispered "he thinks I'm sick. Frank... I'm not...please believe me...please...."
I crawled over to the salt and put my finger on it. Nothing. If Gerard truly had something...wouldn't it burn?
I slowly crawled inside and began to work at his bindings. Took about an hour, but he was finally free. As soon as the rope dropped, he wrapped his arms around me and pulled me tightly to him. There, he whispered what had happened. His parents had died of plague. But he had run away before he could get sick. His words tickled at my neck. His arms were warm. He told me how no one in town would open their doors. How i had been the only one. Then, he told me how he'd seen me in school every day. Then... he told me...that he loved me.
Finally, he released me. A flash of lightning and I saw his baby face. Closer...closer? His cold lips on mine. His body pushing me down. My body allowing it. Salt in my hair as my head reached the floor. Gerard kissing me harder. My lips unable to return the love I was receiving out of shock.
Another flash of lightning. Then, the thunder.
A soft sound from my throat.
This didn't feel right.... What was.... He bit my lip softly. Another sound.
"FRANK IERO!"
I pulled away from the kiss to see my mother standing at the door. She rushed over, pushed Gerard off me and pulled me away from the circle and into her arms.
"Mom... mom! Gerard is healthy! He's fine!"
"He is not!"
More sounds. Father running down the stairs. My lips buzzing. Lightning revealing a red spot on Gerard's neck. Plague.He was breathing hard.
"YOU DEMON!" Mother screeched.
Father coming into the room.
"What is going-?!"
"HE KISSED OUR FRANKIE!"
A slap. Father grabbing Gerard's neck and hitting him. Hard.
I found myself screaming.
"STOP! Stop it,father! I LOVE HIM!"
Father looked away from Gerard's bloody nose and looked to me. His eyes wide.
"You are infected too..." he whispered.
"Father...I'm not... I'm healthy."
Father dropped Gerard and grabbed me. I screamed as he began to hurt me.
Thunder. Lightning. My screams. My mother, crying.
Father stripped away my gown and told mother to get the strap. She complied. Even when i begged him to stop, he wouldn't. He hit me. Over. And over. And over. Even when I told him that I didn't really love Gerard. He did not stop until I was bleeding.Until i was sobbing, on the floor.Gerard was crying too.
Father dropped me and grabbed Gerard by the arm. I heard him open the front door and toss Gerard out to the yard. Mother wouldn't get near me. Then, father returned. He hit me some more. Then, after telling me that my pain would heal me, he left me. To my sorrow. To my misery... to my...blood.
Blood...so much...blood....too much blood.
Too much...
TOO MUCH.
I began to pray. Maybe if i prayed hard enough.... Thunder scared me and i curled into myself. Maybe...maybe....
Maybe i could discover what the feeling in my chest meant. Maybe...it would be okay by tomorrow... maybe...may...be....m..may....
Blood from my mouth. Coughing up blood.
The next day, i woke up in a puddle of my own blood. Weak. Exhausted. And with red bumps on my skin.
Father says that it is sin that caused the plague. And that if we prayed hard enough… if we stayed indoors, we would be safe. That meant ignoring the screams. And pleas for help. That meant not leaving the house. Ever. Under no circumstances. That meant watching everyone die through barred windows. Everyone screaming and praying. Dying and begging God to stop this.
See, Father is a preacher. Every day, he sets out to the outside world to preach and comes back with the news. There are still people dying. No one has been spared by the plague. Maybe they didn’t pray hard enough. Or maybe… maybe it’s something else. Some people are saying it may be in the air. A...flying sickness… or a sort of vapor. Father hit me over the head when I suggested it. He handed me a rosary, told me to go to my room and did not speak to me for three days in a row.
One night… it was raining. Buckets. Cats and dogs. It was POURING. And I heard a knock on the door. Immediately, I stood up and went to it.
“FRANK. STEP AWAY FROM THE DOOR.”
I froze at my Father’s voice. My hand trembling on the knob. Someone was knocking furiously. And screaming. Screaming for help. Calling my name. MY name. G-Gerard…. From where do I know a….
School. That’s right. The old building I hadn’t been to in so long….He was the...boy that always sat in the back...
I blinked and there he was on the floor. Soaked and panting. Crying and screaming.And i was next to him. Hugging him... comforting him as he cried into my shoulder. Father grabbed me by the hair and lifted me off the floor. Gerard’s eyes were wide in terror.The tears fell limply as he took in the scene in front of him.
“M-MISTER IERO…. IM NOT SICK! I CAN PROVE IT!”
Father threw me back and I hit the wall. It hurt. But I knew better than to cry out. My mother was there immediately. She pulled me into her arms and began to pray. Father was analyzing Gerard. Looking him over.
Gerard was pale and trembling. His lips were a soft shade of blue…. But he held still under my Father’s inspection. It was then Mother took my arm and I was DRAGGED to my room and pushed inside. A soft ‘click’ as the door was locked.
Locked in my room. On my… own Birthday….
The tears came. On my own…. DAMMIT, WHY DID I EVEN OPEN THE DOOR?! Why didn’t I leave him outside?? If he was truly healthy, he would’ve lived until tomorrow! I could’ve just brought the plague into the house!
I prayed for about an hour. A soft sound. Father coming into my room. I lowered my head. He frowned, and then let out a soft smile.
“It’s for your safety, Frank. Don’t ever do anything like that again.”
I whimpered and nodded. He scooped me into his arms and hugged me. I looked up to see mother at the door with a small cake. Cake! I hadn’t had cake in forever! I hadn’t left this HOUSE in forever! Mother handed around small pieces of it and we ate silently. Then, Father made a speech about the importance of being thirteen years old. I nodded intently. Soon, it was time to go to sleep.
Father blessed me properly and checked my breathing. All fine. My mother told me, as she did every night, that if I ever felt sick, to come to their room.
They said goodbye and were about to leave when I spoke:
“What about Gerard?”
“What about him.”
“Won’t he get any cake?”
Mother and Father looked at each other.
“Sure, honey.” Mother said sweetly “I will take some to him before he goes to sleep.”
“Where is he staying?”
Mother looked at Father. Father answered.
“He is staying in the guest room. Now, Frank. The boy is tired and he will need rest. You are not to see him for a couple of weeks until he has fully recovered.”
I nodded to the floor and they closed the door. Soft murmurings in the hall. I got out of bed to listen, but they died down way before I got to the door.
Curiosity got the best of me. It was around midnight when I crawled out of bed. The floor was cold and I shivered slightly in my long night gown. Then, I began to make my way down the hall. The storm was still going on and every once in a while, there was a flash of lightning. I needed no candle to get to the guest room.
I knocked on the door softly.
"Come in." Said a weak voice.
I tried the door. Locked. I nearly turned back... but then I remembered that the keys were kept in the kitchen.
"Gerard," I whispered "the door is locked. I will go to the kitchen and get the keys."
"Yes." He said softly. His voice sounded so tired....
I tiptoed into the kitchen and opened the cabinet. A sound. I jumped and hid under the table. A few seconds later, i relaxed and pulled out the keys from the drawer.
In the dark, i could barely find my way back. I waited for a flash of lightning and was finally able to find the lock and slide the key in. A soft sound. The door creaked open.
Everything in the guest room was moved over. I could see Gerard sitting in the middle of the room. His head was down. A flash of lightning revealed the rest of the room to me. He was sitting inside a circle of salt... bound. His white skin had bruises on it and he was trembling slightly. Why...why would father do this.
"G-Gerar-"
"He says I'm sick..." he whispered "he thinks I'm sick. Frank... I'm not...please believe me...please...."
I crawled over to the salt and put my finger on it. Nothing. If Gerard truly had something...wouldn't it burn?
I slowly crawled inside and began to work at his bindings. Took about an hour, but he was finally free. As soon as the rope dropped, he wrapped his arms around me and pulled me tightly to him. There, he whispered what had happened. His parents had died of plague. But he had run away before he could get sick. His words tickled at my neck. His arms were warm. He told me how no one in town would open their doors. How i had been the only one. Then, he told me how he'd seen me in school every day. Then... he told me...that he loved me.
Finally, he released me. A flash of lightning and I saw his baby face. Closer...closer? His cold lips on mine. His body pushing me down. My body allowing it. Salt in my hair as my head reached the floor. Gerard kissing me harder. My lips unable to return the love I was receiving out of shock.
Another flash of lightning. Then, the thunder.
A soft sound from my throat.
This didn't feel right.... What was.... He bit my lip softly. Another sound.
"FRANK IERO!"
I pulled away from the kiss to see my mother standing at the door. She rushed over, pushed Gerard off me and pulled me away from the circle and into her arms.
"Mom... mom! Gerard is healthy! He's fine!"
"He is not!"
More sounds. Father running down the stairs. My lips buzzing. Lightning revealing a red spot on Gerard's neck. Plague.He was breathing hard.
"YOU DEMON!" Mother screeched.
Father coming into the room.
"What is going-?!"
"HE KISSED OUR FRANKIE!"
A slap. Father grabbing Gerard's neck and hitting him. Hard.
I found myself screaming.
"STOP! Stop it,father! I LOVE HIM!"
Father looked away from Gerard's bloody nose and looked to me. His eyes wide.
"You are infected too..." he whispered.
"Father...I'm not... I'm healthy."
Father dropped Gerard and grabbed me. I screamed as he began to hurt me.
Thunder. Lightning. My screams. My mother, crying.
Father stripped away my gown and told mother to get the strap. She complied. Even when i begged him to stop, he wouldn't. He hit me. Over. And over. And over. Even when I told him that I didn't really love Gerard. He did not stop until I was bleeding.Until i was sobbing, on the floor.Gerard was crying too.
Father dropped me and grabbed Gerard by the arm. I heard him open the front door and toss Gerard out to the yard. Mother wouldn't get near me. Then, father returned. He hit me some more. Then, after telling me that my pain would heal me, he left me. To my sorrow. To my misery... to my...blood.
Blood...so much...blood....too much blood.
Too much...
TOO MUCH.
I began to pray. Maybe if i prayed hard enough.... Thunder scared me and i curled into myself. Maybe...maybe....
Maybe i could discover what the feeling in my chest meant. Maybe...it would be okay by tomorrow... maybe...may...be....m..may....
Blood from my mouth. Coughing up blood.
The next day, i woke up in a puddle of my own blood. Weak. Exhausted. And with red bumps on my skin.
this is really good, sad, but good.
1/22/17