Before The Sun Goes Down

“Frank, come on, you've got to wake up,” Gerard shakes him again, getting a grumble from underneath the duvet. “Baby, come on,” No answer, and the ball just curls up tighter. Gerard sighs, shaking his head. But, a small smile is creeping up on his face. He grips the edge of the duvet, and yanks it off of Frank.
Frank's eyes shoot open, narrowing once he sees Gerard standing near the end of the bed with a grin on his face.
“Fuck you, Gerard.” He tries to sound tough, but fails because of his tired voice. Gerard laughs, throwing the duvet on Frank again.
“Come on, it's almost lunch time. You've got to eat something,”
Huffing, he sits up and rubs his eyes. He glares at Gerard for a minute before he gets up.
“Fine,” Gerard looks down, trying to hide smile. “I know you're smiling.”
“Oh, shut up, Frank. Mr Grumpy-pants...” Frank finally cracks a smile, shaking his head.
He reaches into on of the bags and pulls out the half-empty box of cereal he ate from yesterday. He starts eating from it, while Gerard looks at with a slightly disgusted look on his face.
“What?” Gerard shakes his head, waving him off. “Seriously, what's up?”
“You're eating them dry? I don't even like human food any more, but that's still pretty disgusting.” Frank smiles, shrugging.
“I like it this way,” He shrugs again, shoving some more cereal in his mouth. Gerard pulls another face then turns away. He pulls some clothes out of a bag, laying them out on the bed.
“I'm going for a shower, there are your clothes. I've tries to make them match and everything the best I can,” Frank nods, mumbling a 'thank you'. “Jeez, Frank. Were you taught any manners? Don't with your mouth-full, you pig.”
Frank smirks, rolling his eyes.
“Yeah, whatever. What are you, my dad?”
Gerard stiffens up. “No, I'm not.” He spits out the words, making Frank's eyes widen in realization.
“No, no! I didn't mean it like that!” Gerard shrugs, and grabs his clothes off of the bed. Frank flinches when he moves, but relaxes, hoping Gerard didn't see.
But Gerard did see, and Frank opens his eyes to see Gerard staring at him with sadness and disappointment in his eyes. As soon as he sees Frank looking at him, he turns away and walks into the bathroom, locking the door behind him.
“Fuck...” Frank mutters under his breath, running a hand through his hair.
He glances down at the cereal, suddenly put off from eating it. He leaves the box on the dresser, not bothering to pick it up when it falls sidewards. Cereal spills over the polished wood, some of the pieces skittering onto the floor.
He groans, anger flaring up inside him. He fells like punching something, the feeling so sudden and violent that he acts out of it and throws the cereal box against the wall. Cereal flies everywhere. The shower cuts off, and there's silence in the room for a minute, all except Frank's breathing.
Two minutes after, Gerard rushes out of the bathroom, his t-shirt sticking to his still-wet torso and his wet hair flying droplets everywhere.
“What happened?” Frank stares at him, angry tears building in his eyes.
“Nothing!” He shouts, making Gerard jump. He sighs, shaking his head at himself. “Nothing. Nothing happened.” Gerard looks around the room, looking at the cereal mess.
“Okay, Frank... nothing happened," He sighs, shaking his head. "I'm going to finish my shower.” Frank turns away, making Gerard sigh and slam the door to the bathroom.
The framed paintings on the walls shake, and one of them falls to the floor.
Frank looks at it, a tear falling down his face. He angrily wipes it away,walking over to the painting and hanging it back on the wall. His anger dulls a little, so he starts picking up the cereal. He finishes picking up most of it by the time Gerard comes back out of the shower.
He leaves the rest, and throws the box in the trash can. He wasn't going to eat the cereal after it had been on the floor.
Gerard and Frank stare at each other, Frank with a defeated, drained look in his eyes and Gerard trying to be as emotionless as possible.
“I'm sorry.” Gerard shakes his head, a small smile on his face.
“Hey, it's okay. I understand.” Frank nods, smiling back at him. They both know it's a fake smile, but neither comments on it.
No, you don't, Frank thinks, but he says nothing.
He gets his clothes, heading to the bathroom. Once he's in there, he locks the door and leans against it for a minute, cursing himself. He hears Gerard on the other side, muttering something and sighing. Biting his lip, he strips off and gets in the shower.
He cleans himself, then gets out and gets dry. He leaves his hair damp.
“I'm going to see if there's anything else we might need. Like... extra clothes and shit.” Gerard says when Frank steps out of the bathroom. Frank's heart speeds up, so he can feel it pounding in his throat.
He freezes, his eyes widening. He closes his eyes, gulping a few times and trying to breathe evenly.
“Frank?” He holds up a hand, blinking a few times. He tries to smile at Gerard, but it looks more like a grimace. “You okay?” Frank nods, sitting down in a chair.
“I'm... fine,” His voice wobbles, and he can't look Gerard in the eyes. “I'm fine.” His heart slows down slightly, making it easier to hear and breathe.
“Did you hear what I said?” Frank nods, biting his lip. “Frank, baby, I won't be long. I'll be under thirty minutes. Don't... panic, please.” Frank nods again, his eyes flitting from Gerard to all around the room. Trying to avoiding looking into Gerard's eyes.
“I won't... I'm not,” Frank voice gets a little defensive, making Gerard's eyebrows rise.
“Are you sure?” Frank nods, still not looking him in the eyes. “Really?”
“Yes!” Frank snaps, making Gerard roll his eyes.
“Okay, I'll be back soon.” Frank nods again, waving.
“Okay. See you soon.” His voice is stiff, making Gerard hesitate.
“Are you really sure, baby?” Finally, Frank looks up at him.
“I'm sure. I promise.” Gerard nods, studying him.
“Okay. Thirty minutes.” They both nod at the same time, making small smiles appear on both of their faces.
Gerard is back within thirty minutes, but Frank doesn't hear him come in because he's locked himself in the bathroom with an ornamental candlestick. Gerard begins to panic when he can't see Frank, but he notices that the bathroom's locked.
He unlocks it with his mind, growing increasingly terrified at what he's going to find. When he hears the lock click, Frank grips the candlestick tighter and hides behind the door. It slowly opens, so Frank leaps and smashes the candlestick against Gerard's head in a blind panic.
“Oh! Shit, Frank! Ah, shit,” Gerard stumbles, falling against the wall, holding his head. Frank stands in the doorway, his hands outstretched and his mouth wide open, with guilt swimming in his eyes. “Fuck... That actually hurt,” Gerard looks up, amusement in his eyes. The amusement disappears when he sees Frank.
“I'm so fucking sorry...” Biting his lip, Frank looks down, blinking a few times to get away the tears.
“It's okay. You didn't mean to, Frank. It's okay, baby.” Frank shakes his head, looking up.
“No, it's not. It's not okay!” He almost shouts, but his voice breaks.
“What's wrong? This isn't like you.” Frank shakes his head, looking to the side.
“Nothing. I'm... just... I'm sorry.”
“Baby, talk to me. Don't close up again.”
“I just remind myself of... him.”
“Him? Hi- Oh, him...” He pauses, and Frank can feel him coming closer. “Babe, you're nothing like him. He's poison. You're beautiful,” Frank shakes his head, wiping his eyes. Gerard sighs, quietly. He steps closer, making Frank flinch. “I'm not going to hurt you, baby. I love you.”
“Miles said he loved me, too. He hurt me, Gerard. He hurt me really, really fucking bad. Saying that you love me doesn't really do anything to help. It just makes me think of pain and... and rape and lies.” Gerard backs away, hurt.
“I'm... I'm sorry. I don't know what to do that will make you believe that I won't do anything to hurt you... I'm really, really trying.”
“I know you are. I just can't help it.”
Silence falls between them, and they don't speak until Frank starts to fall asleep, at around dinner time.
“Gerard?”
“Yeah, baby?”
“I'm... really sorry,”
“It's okay, baby. Honestly.”
“I know you won't hurt me.... not physically... anyway,” He starts to say something else, but he falls asleep.
Gerard is left feeling guilty, knowing that it is mostly his fault that Frank doesn't really trust him. He's hurt him so many times before, so it's no wonder Frank is having a hard time easing back into what they used to be like. At least, to partially what they used to be like.
When the sun starts coming up, Gerard shakes Frank awake. All of their things are packed up and already in the car. Frank wakes up easily, unlike yesterday, but he's a lot gloomier.
“Come on, babe. Let's get going. You're clothes are there, and I've left a few boxes of cereal out in the car, I didn't know which one you'd want to eat.” Frank smiles at Gerard.
“Thank you,” Gerard shakes his head. He points at the clothes. “Could you, uh, turn around?” Gerard nods, turning around and even closing his eyes. Desire to turn around to see what has happened to Frank's body burns through him, but he doesn't turn around.
“Okay. I'm done.” Gerard spins around. Frank runs a hand through his hair, trying to tame it.
“Lets go, then.”
They drive for a while, Frank eating cereal out of all three boxes because he couldn't decide which one to eat.
“Where exactly are we going?” Gerard shrugs, glancing over to Frank.
“I don't know. Is there anywhere in particular that you wanted to go?” Frank shakes his head.
“Not really. Anywhere is good as long as it's miles away from Miles.” Gerard nods, turning up the radio slightly.
“Well, we're pretty far away from them already. We'll drive for a few more days, then we'll find somewhere to live. A fresh start.”
Smiling, Frank nods.
“A fresh start. Okay.”
“Do you want a house or a flat?”
“Uh... a house, I guess,” He pauses. “Gerard, how are we going to afford all of this?” Gerard smiles.
“As long as I have at least one dollar bill, or a twenty or whatever, I can duplicate it.”
“Wow... That's really clever...”
“Yeah, and we'll never run out of money.” Frank grins, nodding.
“Scrap clever, it's really fucking awesome. We could buy all sorts of shit.” Gerard laughs, nodding.
“Yeah, we could. We could probably buy anything.”
They both laugh, Frank more out of disbelief.
They stop for gas, Frank asleep. Gerard picks up some more drinks, not being bothered to fish more out of the trunk. Frank wakes up when the car starts again, so Gerard hands him a drink.
“Do you not have anything stronger?” He groans, half-joking.
“No, I don't. I think you've had enough to last you a lifetime.” Frank rolls his eyes, gulping down some of the Coke.
“Okay... whatever.”
They drive in silence, tension brewing between them.
They pass several towns before the sun starts to set. Frank is asleep again, so Gerard keeps on driving. He stops for gas again, getting Frank some chocolate.
Perhaps it'll sweeten him up a little...
Frank wakes up at around three o'clock. He smiles at Gerard, looking at the time on the dashboard.
“Don't you want to stop? Surely your ass and legs must be pretty fucking numb by now.” Gerard shrugs, passing Frank the chocolate.
“We stopped not so long ago, for gas. You were asleep. Do you want to stop? I'm fine, but you might want to stretch your legs or something.”
“Yeah, that'd be great. I can't even feel my feet right now,” Frank grins, opening the chocolate. He offers Gerard some, making Gerard laugh. “Oh... yeah. I forgot.” Frank laughs, too.
The easy-going mood is back, the tension from earlier dissipating. They laugh and joke as Gerard finds somewhere to stop where there aren't many people. Frank almost falls over when he tries to get out the car.
“Damn, your legs really are dead.” Gerard laughs, watching Frank struggle to walk normally.
“Yeah, you laugh. It's not like my legs are burning in pain right now or anything.” He smiles, saying it sarcastically.
“Okay, I'll laugh.” Frank rolls his eyes, leaning against the car. He stretches his legs, easing the feeling back into them.
“Okay, I'm good. Shall we continue?” Gerard nods, getting back into the car. “Man, I feel gross as fuck.” Gerard laughs, nodding.
“So do I. Do you want to book another room?” Frank thinks for a second.
“Eh, I think I'll last for another day or so. Are we near any cities? I'd rather live in one of those than a little town with, like, five people in or something.”
“I think we are. A few hours drive or something. Is Washington okay? That's the nearest.” Frank nods, quite excitedly.
“Sure!” Frank blushes slightly at his over-enthusiastic response. “I mean... sure.” Gerard smirks, rolling his eyes.
“You're such a dork.” Frank tries to hide his smile.
“No, I'm not. That's you.” Gerard shakes his head.
“No, it's definitely you.”
“No.”
“Yeah,”
“Fine... It's both of us.” Gerard thinks for a second, a smile on his face.
“Fair enough. It's both of us, then. We're both dorks.”
They both nod at each other, smiling.
A few hours later, they reach Washington. It's raining, but there's still people everywhere. It makes Frank a bit paranoid. Any of them could be Miles. Any of them. He sinks down in his seat, looking out of the windows at every person that gets too close to the car.
“I'll book us into a hotel, and then I'll go and find us a house later.” Frank nods, still keeping his eyes on the passers-by.
Gerard pulls into a hotel car park, then runs in and books a room for a night. He and Frank get the things out that they'll need, and then go up to their room. It's nicer than the other one. There's the bare minimum furniture, with only a bed, a wardrobe and a dressing table. The color scheme is red and black, and the bathroom is a lot cleaner than the last one, too.
“Can I have the first shower?”
“Of course you can, Frank.” Frank smiles, grabbing some clothes and toiletries then going and having a shower. He's out in around twenty minutes.
“It's all yours.”
“Thanks, babe.”
By the time Gerard gets out of the shower and Frank eats, it's almost lunch time. Gerard goes out and goes house hunting, planning to use his powers to persuade whoever it is he's buying it from to let him have it straight away. And to not question his identity.
He manages to find an estate agents with lots of house up for sale, so he asks for one in a secluded neighbourhood, with a nice garden, three bedrooms, and a moderately sized kitchen, lounge, and bathroom.
They have a house that just about fits the bill, so they go and view it.
“This house is really nice. I'll take it.” The estate agent smiles at him, nodding.
“I'm sure your girlfriend will love it.”
“Boyfriend.” Gerard smiles, fighting the urge to roll his eyes.
“Huh?”
“My boyfriend. He'll love it.” She nods, her smile fading a little.
“Right, sorry.” She pulls her car keys out of her bag, telling Gerard to follow her back to the office, where they'll go through the details.
“Okay, so you just need to sign here, here, and here,” He does, using his false signature. He left his I.D, also fake, in his jacket pockets, back at the hotel. He's already had to use his powers on her multiple times. “Debit or credit card?” Gerard looks up sheepishly, shrugging.
“I have cash...” She looks up at him, startled.
“How much? I mean, we do take it, but...” She shrugs, biting her lip.
“I have as much as I need,” He pauses, looking her right in the eyes. Her eyes become hooded, like she's about to fall asleep. “Take the cash. Don't question it, don't tell anyone. If someone asks, make up a lie. I need the house today, so give me the keys,” She gives him the keys, her eyes staring straight ahead, almost at nothing. She's in a trance-like state, with Gerard basically hypnotizing her. “Okay, good. Don't question anything I do. I repeat, just take the cash.” He looks away, pocketing the keys. He duplicates the cash so he has enough, but it falls out of his pockets.
He has around two minutes before she fully becomes alert, so he searches around for a bag to hold all of the money. Finding one, he shoves all of the money into the bag, not needing to count.
Sitting back down, the estate agent's eyes snap open.
“Okay, so I just need the payment, and you can have the house today. I've given you the keys, haven't I?” Gerard nods, biting back a smug smile. He hands her the money, and watches her count it. “You've also paid for most of the mortgage, so that's a bonus. Payment for the mortgage will start in a year, so you needn't worry about any payments like that just yet.” Gerard nods again.
“Thank you so much...” He looks at her name tag. “Chrissy. You've been brilliant,” He winks at her, making her cheeks flush slightly. She giggles. “I best get going. Thank you again.”
“Goodbye, Mr Way. I hope your boyfriend likes the house.” He nods, saying 'thank you' again, and leaving the building.
He gets in his car, rolling his eyes at Chrissy.
“Well, at least I still have the charm,” He shrugs to himself, smirking.
The drive back to the hotel passes by quickly, and he's back up to the room sooner than he though.
“Honey, I'm home!” He grins, laughing to himself. “Also, we actually have a home!” Frank comes out of the bathroom, pale and wide-eyed. He has a smile on his face, though.
“We do?” Gerard nods, laughing. He pulls the keys out of his pocket, jingling them. “Oh my God! That's awesome!” Frank laughs, covering his face.
Gerard's smile fades as he looks at Frank. Right there, Frank looks so happy. Gerard is overcome by an emotion that strikes him in his chest hard and deep. He chokes up slightly, but a smile creeps back on his face.
“We actually have a house!” They both laugh, a breathy, happy sound. “How should we celebrate?” Frank shrugs, the grin growing wider.
“I have no idea...” He looks at Gerard, almost nervously. “A drink?” Gerard thinks about it for a minute, biting his lip.
“Okay, fine. I'll be back in five minutes.” He disappears, seemingly going through the window. He's back in a few minutes, holding two bottles of champagne in his hands.
“You didn't need to get that,” Gerard shrugs, grinning.
“Who cares? We've practically got access to all of the money in the world, baby, and I plan to spend it.”
“Okay, awesome. Crack them open, then,” He pops the cork, handing Frank the bottle. “Be careful of the carpet! There's champagne all over it now,” He tries to scold Gerard, but the bubble from the champagne get up his nose, making him giggle.
“That's the spirit, baby. Be happy and laugh!” Frank rolls his eyes, drinking some more. “Don't get too tipsy, though, because we have to go shopping for some furniture and all that shit in a bit. We can move in right now, but the house is literally bare. The walls, the rooms. Nothing except the necessities.” Frank nods, smiling.
“I can't believe we have our own house. To do whatever we want in it... To invite whomever we want, to decorate however we want,” He stops short, his eyes widening. The alcohol has already seemed to go to his head. “We could even get a kid!” Gerard chokes, spitting some of the drink out.
“A kid? Why'd you want one of them for? Kids are gross.” Frank pouts, shaking his head.
“No, they aren't. Kids are cute. Imagine our kid, they'd be great.” Gerard bites his lip, imagining having a child with Frank. He tries to hide a smile, but he can't.
“Okay, it'd be pretty amazing to have a child with you, but it isn't exactly safe to have a kid running around, is it? We have some of the most powerful things in the world after us, babe.” Frank's smile fades, and he nods.
“Okay, I guess you're right. Perhaps in a few years, though?” Gerard smiles, nodding.
“Of course we can, baby,” Frank beams at Gerard, almost wanting to hug him. Instead, he drinks some more. “I think you've had enough now, Frank.” frank frowns, looking at how much he's drank.
“Okay, fine. Where shall I put it?” Gerard looks around, shrugging.
“Just tip it down the sink, then throw the bottle away.”
Sighing, Frank does what Gerard says.
“All that champagne, wasted...” Gerard laughs at him, watching Frank stumble slightly as he walks back over to Gerard. “You know what?”
“What, Frank?” Frank looks up at Gerard, his eyes sad.
“I wish I didn't freak out when I get touched, because I really, really want to fucking kiss you right now.” Gerard's smile fades, the mood between them growing sombre. Frank steps closer to Gerard, so that there's not much space between them.
“I always want to kiss you...” They stare at each other, studying each other's faces.
“I'm sorry that I have to be drunk before I even have the courage to stand this close to you.” Gerard shrugs, looking down.
“It's okay. It'll just take time.”
“It's just... we haven't even had sex yet. I want to give you everything, but I can't even let you touch me.” Gerard looks back at Frank, watching the tears form and then slide silently down his face.
“I have an idea. We could establish what you're comfortable with and with what you aren't. Perhaps it's just the idea of someone touching you, but once you've been touched by someone other than Miles, you'll... get over it.” Frank's eyes narrow as he nods along.
“That could work...” He smiles. “How should we do it?” Gerard thinks for a second.
“Uh... sit on the bed... and take off your t-shirt.” Panic flashes through Frank's eyes as he shakes his head.
“I... can't!”
“Yes, you can. You're absolutely beautiful. I'm taking mine off, too. You aren't alone. Anything you have to do, I'll do it, too.” Frank gulps, his lower lip trembling.
“But...” His voice breaks.
“You can do this, baby.”
Frank looks away from Gerard. His hands slowly grip the edge of his t-shirt, bringing it up slightly. Gerard turns away, to make it easier. Hopefully, he thinks, Frank will become more comfortable the longer he has it off.
He hears Frank get on the bed, so he pulls off his t-shirt and sits on the opposite end. They stare at each other, Frank's cheeks burning bright red. He's pulled the duvet up to his neck.
“Don't be ashamed. It's only me here, and I love you whatever you look like. I'll always think that you are beautiful, even if you woke up tomorrow with thousands of wrinkles.” Slowly, the grip he has on the duvet gets looser, and it falls.
Gerard tries not to reacts to what he sees. Scars cover his torso, and Miles' name is engraved on his stomach.
“Oh... Frank...” Gerard's voice breaks, making Frank flinch.
“I know, I'm ugly. I probably repulse you.” His voice is monotonous, but his eyes swim with emotion.
“No. No, I don't. I think you're beautiful. Every single scar, even Miles' name. They're beautiful, because they're a part of you.”
Frank chokes back tears, biting back a sob.
“Don't lie to me, please don't lie to me. I'm ugly, I'm so fucking ugly.” Gerard slowly crawls over to Frank, so their knees touch. Frank flinches at the contact.
“You are beautiful. Who cares if you have a few scars? They show that you went through a battle and won. You won, you should be proud of them. I'm pretty proud. No, I'm really fucking proud.” Tears fall, but as they stare at each other, they stop.
Once they've stopped, Gerard reaches out his hand. He places it by their knees, open, palm facing up. Frank's hand reaches out, too. It's shaking really badly as he grips onto Gerard's. Gerard moves their hands so they sit on their knees.
They hold hands for a while, in silence. Frank's grip on Gerard's hand hurts slightly, but Gerard doesn't care. Frank lets go of his hand with a deep breath. He closes his eyes and breathes in and out for a while before opening them again.
“How was that?” Frank smiles slightly.
“It wasn't that bad, Gee.”
“Can we try something else, then?” Frank nods hesitantly.
Gerard's hands comes up to Frank's face, tracing his features. His lips, his nose, his cheekbones, his eyes, his eyebrows. He brushes Frank's hair back from his face.
“You're so beautiful,” He whispers, making Frank open his eyes.
“So are you,” Gerard smiles, moving his hand down to Frank's collarbones. Frank flinches, so Gerard's hand stops moving. After a minute, Frank nods.
His hand traces Frank's collarbones, his touch as light as a feather, his tattoos, his scars. Frank's eyes are clamped shut, his hands clenched so tightly into fists that the skin is white.
“Relax, baby,” Frank breathes in and out, slowly uncurling his fists and relaxing his eyes. His eyes slowly flicker open, cloudy and panicked. The pupils are dilated. “It's okay, it's okay. You're fine, nothing is going to hurt you.” Franks bites his lip, releasing a shaky breath.
“I'm fine, I'm fine,” He repeats to himself under his breath.
Gerard's hand retracts, settling back on his knee.
“You good?” Frank nods. “We can carry on?” Frank nods again. “Don't panic, baby.” Frank nods once more.
Gerard rises to his knees, so he's above Frank. He grabs both of Frank's hands, bringing them to his lips and kissing them slightly. He lets go of the hands, and presses his against Frank's heart. It's beating violently.
“Please relax. You'll pass out or something...” Grabbing Frank's hand, he presses it to Frank's heart. “Can you feel how fast that's beating? It's basically beating for the two of us, isn't it?” Frank lets out a stiff laugh, nodding slightly. “Plug my heart up to yours, and mine'll probably start beating again with how fast yours is,” Frank smiles. “Are you sure you want to continue?” Frank nods, opening his eyes.
“I'm sure... Can you.. uh, kiss me? I want you to.” Gerard searches Frank's eyes before nodding.
“Only if you're sure..” Frank nods, almost desperate.
Gerard edges closer, going slowly so Frank has time to change his mind before they touch. Their eyes close, and their lips brush together lightly. Gerard presses harder, before changing his mind and pulling away. He feels his cheeks, feeling splotches of wetness on them.
Frank's silently crying, his hand pressed against his mouth. His body shakes with the effort of keeping quiet, his eyes screwed shut so tightly Gerard doesn't think they'll ever open again.
“I'm so sorry, Frank. Baby, I'm so sorry... I shouldn't of kissed you...” Gerard's hands hover around Frank wanting to comfort him but not knowing how without touching him.
Frank shakes his head, pulling the duvet back up to cover his face.
After around five minutes of covering his face, Frank emerges, wiping his eyes, but more tears leak out.
“Do it again.” Gerard stares at Frank for a minute. Determination glitters in his eyes.
“What?” Frank nods.
“Do it again, kiss me again.” Gerard shakes his head.
“No way!”
“Please! Please, Gerard, I need you to.”
Staring at Frank, seeing his tears and heart-broken, but determined face, his resolve crumbles.
“Fine, but if you react that way again, I'm not touching you again.” Frank nods solemnly, his hand reaching out for Gerard's.
Their hands grip each other's as they lean in again. As their faces get closer, Frank's breaths get shorter and shakier. Gerard stops just before their lips touch, ready to pull away, but Frank leans in the last bit, bringing their lips together desperately.
Frank leads the kiss, gripping onto Gerard's hand and the front of his shirt. Gerard can feel their cheeks getting wetter as Frank cries, and droplets of tears keep falling onto their intertwined hands. The kiss gets more desperate as Frank searches for something that doesn't seem to even be there. Gerard has no idea what it is. Gerard isn't sure what's going to happen when Frank doesn't find it; Gerard isn't sure that he wants to know.
Frank starts hyperventilating, so Gerard pushes him gently away. His chest is rising up and down really fast, and his hands are shaking harder than they were before. Tears stream down his face, his cries louder.
Guilt stabs through Gerard's gut.
Frank's panic attack keeps getting worse as the second go by.
“Frank!” He pauses, not sure on what else to say. “Breathe! Frank, you've got to breathe!” Frank tries to, his short breathes beginning to get a little longer. “That's it, baby. Breathe with me.” Gerard breathes in and out evenly, putting Frank's hands on his chest so he can feel Gerard breathing.
After a while, Frank's chest is rising and falling evenly. He sniffles, pulling his hand way from Gerard's and curling up on the bed. Gerard's hand falls, landing on the bed. Gerard stares at Frank, sadness cutting through him.
Frank fitfully falls asleep, seemingly having nightmares all night. He shouts incoherent things in his sleep, each time making Gerard jump. Gerard sits on the chair and watches over him all night, in case he has another panic attack.
Frank wakes up as soon as the first ray of sun comes through the curtains. He sits up straight away, wide-eyed. He looks around the room, relaxing when he spots Gerard. Gerard smiles at him, wary of what his mood is going to be like.
“Good morning... I'm sorry about last night,” Gerard shakes his head.
“There is absolutely no need to be sorry at all. You should be proud that you made it that far.” Frank shoots Gerard a grateful smile.
“Thank you,” Gerard smiles back, throwing Frank a bottle of water. He catches it, opening it and drinking half of it within a few gulps.
“You've really got to start drinking more, baby. You've hardly drank anything...” Frank nods.
“Okay, I will.”
“Okay, get ready. We're going furniture shopping. And you're going to see the house.” Frank beams at Gerard, making Gerard smile, too.
“Wow, okay. I'll go and have a shower,”
Frank grabs the clothes Gerard has set out for him and is back out from the bathroom in ten minutes. He leaves his hair damp.
“My hair is getting really, really long...” He pushes it back from his forehead.
“Yeah, it is... it makes you look cute, but we can get it cut today, if you want?” Frank nods, his cheeks turning a light pink from the compliment.
“Okay, thanks.”
They drive around some shops, buying flat-pack furniture for the bed and things like that. Things that they can easily hold in the car and necessities that they need to spend a night in there before they buy everything else is bought. When they get to the house, Gerard gives Frank the keys so he can have a look around before Gerard starts bringing all of the stuff in.
Frank looks around all of the rooms, wondering why there's three bedrooms. He loves the house, and he comes out with a huge smile on his face.
“You like it?” Frank nods, his grin widening.
“I sure do!” Gerard laughs, pulling some of the boxes out.
“Can you grab some shit for me?” Frank nods again, reaching into the trunk and grabbing a box.
They go inside the house, leaving the things in a pile in the hallway. Once the trunk is empty, they start putting the furniture up.
Starting with their bedroom, they work through the rooms. There isn't a lot for them to do, so there isn't a lot of furniture in the house.
“I'll hire a van or something tomorrow, so we can get the couches and shit like that.” Frank nods, looking around the room.
“Shouldn't we have painted the walls and decorated before we started to put the furniture in?” Frank smirks. Gerard sighs, his shoulders drooping.
“Yeah, we should have. Damn it...” Frank laughs at their stupidity.
“Come on, we'll just get some sheets to put over them when we decorate.” Gerard's face lights up at the suggestion.
“See, I knew there was a reason I though you were pretty clever,” Frank rolls his eyes, shaking his head.
“Ah, shut up. I'm smarter than you!” Gerard stares at Frank, shaking his head in mock disgust.
“Yeah, no, sure you are... Totally, Frank,” They grin at each other, playfully. "We were going to get your hair cut today, weren't we?" Frank nods, shrugging.
"We'll just go tomorrow, one day isn't going to make a difference," He shrugs again. “You know, I'm starved. Aren't you hungry? Do you need to hunt or anything?” Frank looks at Gerard as he tries to lie. Panic builds up inside him at the thought of Gerard leaving, but he swallows it down. “Yes, you are. You need some nutrients, Gerard. Go hunt, I'll be fine. I'll go to sleep or something.” Gerard sighs, looking away.
“Frank... baby, are you sure? I can last for a while longer, it's not that bad. I mean, it's already late, and I know you won't sleep while I'm gone...” He trails off, secretly hoping to go and hunt.
“I'll be fine. I'll sleep. I think I have a bottle of sleeping pills in my pockets, so I'll take a couple of them or something if I can't sleep. You can't do this to yourself just because you don't want me to freak. I've got to suck it up at some point, I can't live my whole life being terrified of being alone.”
They stare at each other for a while, Gerard searching Frank's eyes. Frank silently pleads with him, making Gerard agree.
“Fine, babe. I'll go, but I won't be long, okay?” Frank nods, smiling. He clenches his fists so Gerard doesn't see his shaking hands.
“Sure. Take as long as you need.” Gerard smiles, nodding.
“Okay...” He turns around, going for the door. “You're sure?” He stops walking, turning back around to face Frank. Frank laughs, a forced sound, and nods.
“Of course I am, you big silly. Just go.”
Sighing, Gerard nods and grabs the door handle, opening the door.
“I'll lock it, okay? Do you want the keys or shall I keep them?”
“Uh... I'll keep them, in case something happens and I need to get out.” Gerard nods, throwing the keys to Frank.
Frank catches them, forcing a smile.
“Bye, baby, see you soon.”
Frank's smile drops as soon as Gerard closes the door. He rushes to lock it, bolting it, too. He looks around the hallway. The shadows have seemed to grow, but he tries to ignore them. He shivers, then checks the lock once more before going upstairs.
When upstairs, he finds his pants from the first night, and finds a small bottle of sleeping tablets in them.
“Bingo..” He pockets them, and then turns on all the lights in the house. It makes him feel slightly safer, but not by much.
He gets himself a bottle of water, not wanting to go down the stairs again, and takes the pills with it. He was already tired, so he thinks that he shouldn't be awake for much longer, but he wants a shower. He debates on whether or not to just have one tomorrow, standing in the middle of the bedroom and talking to himself.
He can feel his eyes getting heavier, so he decides to just have a quick one, not bothering to really wash his hair, just to wash off the grime and dirt from moving all the furniture in. He gets some pyjamas, and creeps into the hallway to the bathroom.
The shower doesn't have a shower curtain yet, but the door has two locks. One looks new, so he thinks that maybe the previous owners installed one of them.
He turns on the shower, stripping as he waits for it to warm. He realizes that he hadn't brought any shower gel in with him, but he doesn't want to go out naked and he's too tired to get his clothes back on and find some out.
He just gets in the shower, letting the water clean him the best it can.
“I'll have a shower in the morning, anyway,” He shrugs, running a hand through his long, messy hair. “I need to cut it...” He sighs, shaking his head. His eyes droop slightly, only to be jerked open when he hears a noise down the stairs. The pills he took earlier, dull his senses, making everything seem faraway. His eyelids get even heavier, but he wills himself to stay awake.
He freezes, but hearing it again makes him turn off the shower. He backs away from the door, shaking. His legs barely supporting him.
He hears a voice, making his breath catch in his throat. He can't seem to breathe again properly apart from in gasps, the noise strangled. The door rattles, and he hears the voice again. It's muffled to his ears.
One thought runs through his head, Miles. Miles. Miles. Miles.
He shakes his head, his breathing becoming more erratic, his heart speeding up even more. He holds his hands out in front of him, his eyes wide.
Suddenly, he trips. The door is busted open just as he falls, cracking his skull open. Blood gushes from the wound, making the white bathtub red, and the water pink. The figure, stands in the doorway, his chest heaving up and down in panic, even though he doesn't need to breathe.
“Frank... oh, shit... oh, shit... Frank, oh... shit, shit, shit, shit,” The red-head steps forward, his legs shaking. “Fuck... the blood, oh, shit. Fuck, shit, fuck,” They fall over, his knees buckling underneath.
A sob comes from them, before he pulls himself together. “Shit, you're loosing too much blood. I need to get you out of there. Okay. Okay,” He stands up, closing his eyes and drawing in a breath. He releases it, walking over to the shower. Frank's eyelids flutter, making him jump. He turns off the shower, watching the blood pool around Frank's head and get caught in the current of the remaining water going down the drain.
Lightning flashes, making him jump.
“Fuck, okay. Okay. Calm down, okay. Okay, okay.” He grabs Frank, pulling him out of the bathtub. He wraps a towel around Frank, knowing Frank would probably be mortified if he knew he'd been exposed.
Blood runs down his arm and Frank's face. He carries him out of the bedroom, laying him on the bed. The sheets get blood on them, the wetness from Frank making it spread.
Gerard grabs a bundle of clothing, pressing it again Frank's head.
“Okay, fuck, I can do this. He just... has to die...” He bites his lip, shaking his head against the horrible images flashing through his head. “Fuck... no, no, I can't do this shit. I can't do this to him...”
He checks Frank's pulse, feeling it slow down by the second. The beats are irregular. Blood socks through the clothes and spills onto the sheets even more. The smell of the blood makes his teeth sharpen.
“Pull yourself to-fucking-gether. Frank is going to die. But you can save him. He'll still be dead. But alive. You can live forever together. Fuck...” He closes his eyes again, nodding once, as if to finalize his decision.
He checks Frank's pulse again, finding none. His stomach drops, even though he knows it's okay. Frank is already starting to go cold.
But he'll be like this forever now... cold. Better get used to it.
Gerard reaches out with his mind, calling for Frank. Even though he's dead, his mind will still be active. He needs to get a connection to that for this to work. He finds Frank, wrapping a mental binding around it so it can't die, like his body has.
The poison needed for it gathers in Gerard's mouth, dripping from his fangs. He keeps his mind concentrated, willing for Frank to come back. His necromancy powers gather, and he lets his primal instincts take over. His teeth sink into Frank's neck as their minds fight.
Gerard wins, letting his necromancy do its job. The binding makes Frank's mind stronger, but he starts to lose memories. He tries to keep hold of most of them, but whatever ones Frank has lost, he'll fill them in. With Frank's mind alive and strong, all that is left is the wait for his body to fix itself.
He'll become like Gerard. Just a few days wait, and there will be a new, viscous vampire in Washington.

Notes

Plot twist!