What's wrong with Way?...(edited)

Every day for the next week, the gang would walk from Frank's room in ward 10, up to the ICU.

The plan had been for the boys to all take turns staying with Frank over night while the others went home. Bob had other ideas. Bob insisted on staying by Frank's side, not wanting to leave him with anyone else. It wasn't that he didn't trust Pete or Patrick, it was just that he wanted to be there.

Bob loved Frank, though in a much more sane and innocent way than Mikey had. He knew that they would only ever be friends, but he considered being friends with the little sprite to be something very special, so that was ok.

They had kissed, once, a very long time ago. Bob had admitted to Frank that he had feelings for him, right after admitting that he was gay, and Frank being Frank...smiled and kissed him softly, then shook his head and told him that he loved him, just not like that...more like a brother.

Bob being Bob...understood.

They'd sat up all that night, eating ice cream, watching Spanish soap-operas, (a guilty pleasure they happened to share) and coming to the conclusion that friends was a hell of a lot better than trying to be together, which would inevitably end in screaming and thrown frying pans, or something.

Now, Bob felt a very strong sense of guilt over leaving Frank with the younger Way brother. It wasn't like he could've known what was going to happen...hell, no one knew how Mikey felt for the younger teen, or that he was one step away from being a complete nut-job, but that didn't stop Bob from chewing his fingernails and mentally beating himself up for not seeing the signs...which he was sure had to have been there.

It was late Thursday afternoon and everyone was as usual gathered in Gerard's room. The boys of course were there for Frank, while Frank only had eyes for Gerard.

Don and Donna had been at the hospital every day, sitting with their son and praying for some good news. Every night, they would go home to sleep.

It was nearing time for evening meals and Pete had gone to fetch pizza for everyone, as no one should have to eat the muck they laughingly called food in that place. Frank was curled up on Gerard's bed, holding his hand with his head rested on Gerard's slowly rising and falling chest, when a small squeak came from Frank's lips. Suddenly he was sat bolt upright.

"He squeezed my hand."

Frank breathed, wide eyed and staring. Don and Donna got up from their chairs against the wall and walked to the bedside. Gerard lay silent and still as he had since they first saw him here.

"Are you sure Frankie dear?"

Donna asked gently, knowing how desperate the boy was to get Gerard back.

"Yes!..."

Frank said with great certainty.

"I'm sure..."

Just then, Gerard did it again.

"There!...did you see?"

They had.

"I'll fetch the nurse."

Patrick murmured, slipping from the room.

"Gee?...come on baby, come back to us...to me..."

Don grimaced slightly at the pet name, but had by this point decided that as long as his boy was alive and happy, that was all that really mattered. The gay thing?...well he couldn't say in all honesty that he was happy about it, but he would learn to deal. Likewise Bob's mood dropped ever so slightly when Frank used the term of endearment, but he too was of the opinion that if it made Frank happy, then he should support them as best he could.

"Gee?...please?..."

Frank felt the small squeeze again and looked up at Gerard's face, just as his eyes fluttered open.

"Gee!...Oh my God!..you're awake!"

"Gee honey? Can you hear me?..."

Donna asked at Gerard's other side.

"It's me, mom...your dad's here too, and Frankie..."

She looked at Don and whispered.

"Do you think he can hear me?"

"He can hear..."

Frank grinned, leaning over his love to meet his confused hazel eyes.

"Hi baby..."

He stroked Gerard's hair, then slid his fingertips down along his jawline.

"I missed you my angel. I'm so happy you came back."

The door to the room opened and two nurses bustled in, with Patrick on their heels.

"Ok, let's give him some space now shall we?..."

The more senior nurse said, directing the comment toward Frank. The boy yipped slightly in alarm, then slid off the bed, reluctantly let go of Gerard's hand and huddled into Bob's waiting arms. The nurses stepped up to the bedside as everyone else stepped back.

"Hello?...Mr. Way?"

"Gerard..."

Frank corrected. The nurse raised an eyebrow at him.

"His name's Gerard."

The nurse nodded, then returned to shining a light into Gerard's eyes.

"Gerard...I'm nurse Brooks. Don't try to talk yet, there's still a tube in your throat..."

Gerard tried to close his eyes against the light, but the nurse kept holding them open. Gerard's hand came up and weakly pulled on the nurse's sleeve to try to make her stop. Luckily she took the hint.

"Ok Gerard, I'm going to take this tube out now. What I want you to do is take in a really deep breath when I say, then when I tell you, blow it out as hard as you can...as if you're blowing out a hundred candles on a cake. Do you think you can do that?..."

Gerard nodded, very slightly.

"Good. Ok now...deep breath in...and...blow!..."

Gerard blew as hard as he could. He felt the tube slide out of his throat and it made him cough violently. Suddenly there was another nurse at his other side, offering him water in a glass with a straw. Gerard sucked in a few small sips. It eased the raw feeling in his throat.

Nurse Brooks returned to his side and used the bed's remote to sit him up a bit.

"Is that a bit better?..."

Gerard nodded softly, not meeting her sharp green eyes.

"You have been very lucky Gerard...I wouldn't normally expect someone with injuries as severe as yours to make it..."

Gerard looked at her now.

"I think the fact that your family and friends barely left your side for a minute...that probably helped."

Gerard looked around the room. He saw his mum and dad holding hands and smiling wide at him, he saw two boys who he was pretty sure he'd never laid eyes on before in his entire life, and he saw Frank...his Frankie, stepping away from the other boy's sides and toward the bed. Gerard tried to smile but his mouth felt weird. He guessed it was from having a tube down his throat for fuck knows how long.

"Hi angel..."

Frank murmured as he reached his side, leaning in close to look into his eyes.

"How you feeling baby?..."

Gerard opened his mouth, but nothing came out. Frank's smile stalled slightly.

"B-baby?"

Fuck!...not again.

~time passes~

Over the next few days, Frank refused to leave Gerard's side, staying curled up on the older boy's bed, their fingers linked permanently together. Gerard tried to speak...he tried to make even a tiny sound. But he couldn't.

Bob, Pete and Patrick came every day and sat with them, talking and laughing about things they'd done on their camping trip, and fun they'd shared since they'd met...but talk about those things always led to memories of Ray, and the boy Mikey had been before he'd apparently snapped.

Don and Donna spent most of their time at Gerard's bedside, but from time to time they took the walk up to the psyche ward to visit with Mikey.

Mikey was pumped full of drugs, sedatives and mood stabilisers, and was only vaguely aware of what was going on, and where he was. He kept asking to go home, and where was Frankie. It had all been explained to him, more than once, but a combination of the drugs and his shattered mental state meant that his memory was pretty much shot.

"Can I go home now mom?"

He asked as Donna sat holding his hand. He was strapped to the bed and it broke Donna's heart.

"No sweetie, not today."

She tried not to tear up.

"Why am I here?...did I have an accident?"

"No baby. Y-you're sick, and the doctors are trying to make you better."

Mikey nodded slightly, accepting the explanation.

"When's Frankie gonna come see me?"

Donna sighed. She couldn't handle much more today. Don had already left the ward. He'd only been there ten minutes.

"Maybe tomorrow sweetie..."

She hated lying to him, but he wouldn't remember anyway and if a little white lie made him happy, it's what she'd have to do.

"He didn't sleep well last night."

Mikey frowned.

"Who's with him?"

"Bob, Pete and Patrick are at the house. Don't worry."

"Isn't Ray there?"

Donna had had enough.

"No baby. Now, I have to go. I have a dentist's appointment. I'll be back tomorrow. Ok?"

"Ok mom. Hey?"

"Yes baby?"

"Can I go home with you?"

Donna stood up, pulling her hand from his and leaning in to kiss his forehead.

"Not today baby...perhaps tomorrow."

Then she turned and left, tears streaming down her cheeks.

Don was waiting outside the double doors, leant against the wall. When he saw his wife emerge he pushed off from the wall and stepped toward her, taking her in his arms.

"Rough session?..."

Donna nodded. Don pressed a kiss to the top of her head.

"Let's go grab a coffee before we go back to Gee's room...ok?"

Donna nodded, hiccuping through her tears as Don led her away down the hallway.

Gerard buried his face in Frank's neck as two nurses changed the dressings on his arms and chest. There were tears on both boy's faces...Gerard's because of the pain he was in, that was only partially numbed by the analgesics, and Frank's because he couldn't stand to see Gerard in such distress.

Frank kept his eyes shut while the nurses worked as he didn't want to see the damage that had been done to his beautiful boyfriend...though he vowed to love him no matter what...and quietly cooed encouraging words to him, or sang softly into his ear to distract him. He hoped that it helped.

The other boys were all waiting outside as Don and Donna returned. Bob looked up from his phone and offered a small smile.

"Dressings."

He stated. Don nodded in understanding.

"How long?"

Just as Bob was about to answer, an ear splitting scream came from behind the closed door. A second later, Frank stumbled out of the room, white faced and shaking as the door was quickly closed behind him. Bob stepped forward and caught him as his knees wobbled and collapsed beneath him.

"Frankie?..."

Bob enquired as everyone gathered around him.

"What happened?"

He scooped Frank up into his arms and headed to the nearby chairs, sitting the trembling boy in his lap. Tears soaking Frank's pale face, he looked around at the group. With a small, frightened voice he said...

"He's...he's..."

But that was all they could get him to say.

~time lapse, twelve days later~

Everyone was dressed in black, and no one wanted to talk. Frank was asleep on Bob's lap, dressed in his black suit. It was two hours since the funeral ended and everyone was back at the Way's house.

Don and Donna were in the kitchen making coffee that everyone needed, and sandwiches that no one would eat. Pete and Patrick were sat together on one sofa, while Bob cradled Frank against him on the other.

When the phone rang, everyone jumped slightly in the silence. Don walked through from the kitchen to answer it.

"Hello?...Yes it is...really?...ok, I'll be there in a bit...ok, bye."

He hung up and returned to the kitchen without another word.

Bob looked down at the boy he adored, curled up asleep in his arms. Frank spent so much time asleep these days and the doctors were still no closer to working out why...it worried Bob a lot.

The door to the kitchen opened a few minutes later and Don and Donna came out with coffee and sandwiches. Everyone took a cup. The food was ignored...no one had a stomach for it.

"I'll be back in a while."

Don said as he slipped his coat on and headed for the door. Silence fell once again as they drank, and remembered.

About ten minutes later, Frank stirred.

"Geeee..."

He whined in his sleep. Bob bit his lip to keep from crying at the pain held in that one word.

"Love..."

Frank's hands clenched at the front of Bob's shirt.

"...you."

Bob let a tear fall, gently stroking Frank's back to calm him.

When Don's car pulled into the driveway a while later, Donna got up from the chair she'd been quietly sitting in and went to meet him at the door. As the boys sat silently in the living room, they heard the door opening, then Donna greeting.

"Hi...welcome home baby."

The door was closed and a moment later the boys looked up. Donna had a weak smile on her face and Don was as stoic as ever...and the boy with the faded red-hair in the wheelchair, was grinning ear to ear as his eyes landed on his Frankie.

"Frankie?..."

Bob gently shook the boy in his lap. Frank woke, his tear-reddened eyes fluttering open to look up at his friend.

"He's here!"

Frank's eyes widened and he turned to look. A second later, he was flying across the room and into Gerard's waiting arms, being careful of course of all the older boy's still healing wounds.

"Gee...I missed you baby..."

He leaned up to kiss Gerard's pale lips. Gerard smiled and nodded softly.

"I love you."

Gerard wrapped Frank in the biggest hug he could manage, and that was where they stayed for the rest of the day, happy in each other's arms.

~the end~

Notes

If you'd not read this before, hope you liked it.
xxx