I Think I Like It

The next week was difficult, to say the least. Everyone around me seemed to be excited for my birthday and for Halloween, except for me. I can’t blame my bad mood entirely on Mr. Way, of course, part of it was that my birthday was coming up and I wasn’t in the least excited. My Mom, for one, was definitely upset, and was constantly crying because her ‘baby’ was growing up. I tried to console her as best as I could, but to be honest, I was shit-scared of growing up, too. This wasn’t just another birthday, it was a milestone, and I wasn’t sure if I was mature enough to be considered an adult. The only thing that really made me excited was my friends and I making plans for the Halloween party. The way things looked, we were going to have an awesome time. It was a masquerade party, so the guys were making plans on how they were going to pick up chicks using their disguises, and then leave, so the girls didn’t get ‘clingy’. As much as I abhorred their objectification, I had to admit – it was a smart plan.
I already knew that Mr. Way wasn’t going. One of the girls had asked him earlier in the week and he had laughed and said that he was far too respectable for something like that, but hoped that we all had a good time. I suppose it was better that way. For the most part, we’d been good at keeping our distance from each other. He started sitting intentionally facing away from me during lunch, and we both paid each other as little attention as possible during our lessons, him instead favouring to spend long periods of time talking to the girls, while I chatted with Chris (who I had intentionally moved closer to for that purpose). As much as it was difficult, I knew that it was definitely for the best. I felt less weighed down by him, and it made it easier to actually enjoy his company. When he made a joke, I didn’t have to pretend to not find it funny anymore – I could just laugh. If I knew the answer to a question in class, I didn’t have to pretend to not know the answer, I could just put my hand up and answer.
Not only that, but it made it a hell of a lot easier to pay attention to what he was actually teaching.

The morning of my birthday, my Mom woke me up with eggs and bacon in bed, with a skull-shaped cupcake on the side. I beamed up at her and wolfed down my food.
“Thanks, Mom.” I said between mouthfuls. It was rare that I had time to eat before school, but on my birthday my Mom always insisted that I took the time to treat myself, and I loved her for it. She rocked backwards onto her heels, smiling at me wistfully.
“What?” I asked, suspiciously.
“You got a letter in the mail.” She said simply. I raised my eyebrow.
“It’s probably just another card. I’ll open it with the others when I get home.” I said dismissively. She chewed her lip.
“I’d agree…but it says that, and I quote, “this card must be read by Frank Iero on the date of his 18th birthday before he comes into school. Failure to do so will ruin everything ever.”” She said, laughing and tossing me the envelope. I thanked her for breakfast again, and put the letter next to me, forgetting for a moment that it was even there. In fact, it was only when I stood up to get ready and it fell on the floor that I remembered it was there. I tore open the paper and looked at the words scrawled messily across the paper.
“Frank. I hope this doesn’t ruin our truce. Just wanted to say happy birthday, and to wish you all the happiness in the world. You truly are one in a million. Yours, as always, G.”
I must have read the note a thousand times before I shakily placed it next to me. If the words didn’t give it away, the handwriting definitely did – I’d seen his messy handwriting a thousand times before. There was no stamp, so I guessed that he must have hand delivered it…meaning that he was outside my house. My breath caught and I snatched the note up again, reading it over and over, trying to memorise the curve of each letter. That little fuck. I chuckled to myself and managed to tear myself away from the note for long enough to get ready, and to lay my masquerade costume on my bed, ready for when I came home.
I debated leaving the note behind, but I decided that it might be more entertaining to bring it with me, and shoved it into my jacket pocket.
I raced downstairs, taking the stairs two at a time, and only stopped to give my Mom a hug and a kiss. She patted my hair down on the side of my head and sighed.
“God, you’re all grown up…” she said, her eyes filling with tears. I laughed and kissed her on the cheek.
“Don’t worry, I’m still the same little shit.” I grinned. She laughed.
“That’s true. You’re also going to be a late little shit if you don’t get a move on.” She said, pushing me towards the door. I hugged her again, and then raced out the door, realizing that I only had 10 minutes to walk the 15 minute distance to school.

As soon as I crossed into the school, I was leapt on by all of my friends and tackled to the floor.
“Happy birthday Frankie!” they shouted almost in unison. I wrestled them off, laughing and breathless.
“Wow, you guys shouldn’t have.” I scowled, but broke out into a grin. They pulled me through the hallway, chanting almost incomprehensible things, but everyone seemed to get the message that it was my birthday.

“Tonight” Joe said, as we sat down in Math class, “is going to be beastly. Booze, chicks, and cool as fuck costumes? What better way to spend your birthday, eh Frank?” he said, nudging me. I laughed and nodded, although I could definitely think of a better way to spend my birthday. I chewed my lip and brushed my fingertips against the note that was tucked away in my pocket. I didn’t have English at all today, so I’d have to go confront him about it at some point during the day. That is, if I resolved that I was actually going to confront him. Right now, I was stuck between needing answers and wanting to keep our façade going.
Surely, though, if he was so intent on staying away from me, he wouldn’t have written me a note and fucking hand-delivered it, would he? I put my head in my hand and tried to focus on my current teacher – although, with very little success. It didn’t help that I hated math. Math on my birthday was even worse.
“D’you think I’ll get laid tonight?” Joe whispered.
“What was that, Mr. Peters?” my teacher snapped. I snorted and leaned away from him.
“Uh. Nothing, Miss. Just commenting on how beautiful you look today.” He said smoothly, and I choked trying to hold in my laugh. I think if she could have given him the finger, she would have at that very moment. He looked at me and winked, leaning back in his chair. I rolled my eyes at him and smiled down at my desk. For the first time since receiving the note, something other than Mr. Way was making me smile. And that was a very, very good thing.

Two hours filled with Joe trying to make me laugh (and succeeding, but only after he made a complete ass out of himself) later, and I found myself standing, once again, outside Mr. Way’s classroom. The note seemed to be burning a hole in my jacket pocket as I waited for him to dismiss his class.
One by one, the kids, a couple years younger started filing out, giving me odd looks as they did, as if, because I was older than them, I came from an alien planet. I scoffed at the idea, and looked up to see Mr. Way sitting at his desk, his head buried in a book, again. I’d never realized before how much he enjoyed reading. I cleared my throat to announce myself, and his face lit up.
“Frank. How’re you doing?” he asked. He moved as if he was going to stand up, then decided to stay sitting down. I stepped into the classroom and shut the door behind me, making sure we had complete privacy. He raised his eyebrows in surprise, but his mouth still formed a smile. I took a deep breath, and then removed the note from my pocket.
He knew what it was the second I pulled it out – I could tell by the way his face dropped. Still, I slid it over to him, and he humored me by opening and reading it.
“What, so I can’t wish my students a happy birthday anymore?” he snapped, sliding the note back. I sighed and leaned on his desk.
“I just…don’t understand. I thought we had an agreement.”
“We do!” he exclaimed. He stood up then, and leaned on the corner of his desk, so he was next to me.
“Then what’s this? It’s…not what we agreed to.” I whispered. I didn’t want these words to be coming out of my mouth, but I knew I had to say them. He shrugged.
“I thought you’d like it.” He murmured. I felt my heart swell in my chest, and hysterical laughter bubble out of my throat, earning a glare from him.
“You think this is because I didn’t like it?” I laughed. He blushed and looked down.
“Well, what is it then?” he asked quietly. I sighed. I’m not 18 for even a day yet and already I have to act like the adult.
“It’s just that things have been going so well. I feel like we can actually interact without the weirdness. Don’t you?”
“It was never weird for me.” He said coldly. I sighed and rested my head on his shoulder, not caring if it was pushing it or not.
“You know what I mean.” I sighed. He stood up and paced the floor in front of me for a moment, before turning towards me suddenly.
“There’s something you’re not considering.” He said, staring into my eyes.
“What’s that?” I asked, my voice weak. He moved forward so the backs of my legs were pressed against the table, and his body almost completely covered mine. His face was only inches from mine, and I could feel his breath on my face, could almost taste him on my trembling lips.
“Maybe it’s not as easy to stay away from you as I thought it would be.” He whispered. As he said it, he pulled my legs so they were open and wrapped them around his waist, smirking as he did.
God, I’d missed that smirk.
Without even thinking, I brought a hand up to touch his face.
“Mr. Way…sir… we can’t.” I gasped. He raised his eyebrows in feigned innocence.
“I’m not doing anything.” He murmured, sliding his hands down so they were on my waist, pushing me down towards him. I moaned despite myself.
“Please, we’ll get in trouble.” I gasped. He laughed, but stepped back, rubbing the back of his neck.
“I’m happy one of us is mature.” He grinned, but it was darkened somehow, and I realized that he was genuinely disappointed. I reached out to hold his hand, but he pulled it away, smiling sadly still.
“Sorry about the note. I’ll be more professional in the future.” He murmured. I chewed my lip and sighed.
“The note was great. I loved it.” I said softly. He looked up and gave me a half smile.
“Thanks. You should really go.” He said, gesturing to the door with a limp hand.
“Okay. Yeah.” I said, forcing a smile.
“Happy Birthday, Frank.” He said, his eyes lighting up a little. I smiled back and left the room, feeling even more confused than when I’d entered it. But then, what did I expect?

I didn’t see him again for the rest of the day, and I regret to say that I barely noticed. With my friends constantly buzzing about the party, I was way too excited to think about him. Now that we were actually coming up to it, I couldn’t believe that I wasn’t this excited about it before.
“Are you sure you don’t want to ride with us, Frank?” Joe asked. I smiled and nodded.
“Yeah, my Mom wants to spend some time with me before the party, so I guess I’ll just see you there.” I said brightly. They accepted this, and carried on talking about their party plans, which I listened to more out of excitement than interest. Honestly, I didn’t care much for seducing random girls (or any girls. Or guys. Or anyone who wasn’t Mr. Way, at this point), but it was laughable that they thought their plans would work. I was just relieved that none of them involved drugging them – they weren’t that low, after all.

‘Quality time’ with my Mom consisted of me opening presents and cards. I didn’t get much in the way of money, but I did get a new phone from my Uncle, which I was pretty pleased with. We spent a lot of time getting it set up and moving my contacts over (I still had the same number), and agreed that I could just use my old phone as an emergency one. Feeling brightened by this already, I ran upstairs and changed into my masquerade costume. It wasn’t anything special, just a tux with a black eye mask, but I thought it made me look pretty cool. Besides, there wasn’t anyone I wanted to impress there, was there?
Feeling darkened for the first time since speaking to him, I reached into my pocket for the note, and realized with a start that it wasn’t there.
Fuck.
I pretty much overturned half of my bedroom trying to find it, and shredded the inside of my school bag. Still, I couldn’t find it. My hands shook as I sat down on my bed and considered my options. Worst-case scenario, I’d dropped it and one of my friends had found it, and I’d get grilled for it. That wasn’t so bad, I could just lie my way out of it, saying that it was from some girl.
But then, would they give it back? The idea of watching someone throw it away or tear it up made my chest ache. That note was proof that he and I were real, that I still meant something to him. I ran my hand through my hair and groaned. I’d have spent more time looking, but a glance at the clock told me that my time was pretty much up. Feeling slightly nauseous with nerves, I walked downstairs, kissed my Mom and thanked her for everything, and made my way to school, feeling slightly less excited now that I had yet something more to worry about.

The nerves subsided almost as soon as I reached the school, and made way for pure delight. The school hall was, as it was every year, decked out in Halloween decorations, with blood, guts and skeletons smeared across every wall – I couldn’t ask for a better birthday party if I’d tried. Near the far wall there was a table laden high with snacks, reminding me that I’d, in light of realizing that my note was gone, had forgotten to eat. I made my way over and picked through the offerings of candy and cupcakes available. There was alcohol too, but I figured I’d wait until I saw my friends to actually start drinking – I wasn’t much for alcohol anyway.
I scanned the groups of people, trying to pick out someone I recognized, and was actually impressed to say that I couldn’t. I wasn’t even sure who was a teacher and who was a student. Normally, the theme for these parties is just general Halloween costumes, but I was beginning to really warm up to the idea of a masquerade, even if it did mean that I’d probably miss my friends; though I figured that they’d know where to find me. That, or they’d just hijack the DJ’s microphone and call me up to the stage. I laughed a little at the thought.
“What’s so funny?” a voice said from next to me. I looked up into the masked face of someone I didn’t recognize. They wore a black mask that covered their eyes and part of their nose, similar to mine, except it was made from velvet, and had white and red roses swirling around the edges. Their costume was cool too. Instead of a tux, they’d opted for a dress shirt and pants and a thin cloak that was fastened where their tie would normally be. If it weren’t for the strand of red hair sliding out from underneath his top hat, I might have actually not known who he was. I tried to remain subtle and hide my smile.
“Just thinkin’ about someone.” I said coyly. He smiled.
“Who?”
“A guy.”
“Which guy?”
“Just a guy.”
“Is he hot?” he asked, not looking at me. I was glad the mask covered most of my cheeks, so he couldn’t see the way I blushed.
“He’s gorgeous.” I murmured. ‘The man’ chewed his lip, and I saw his shoulders shake as he held in a laugh.
“What’s so funny?” I retorted. He smirked (oh yeah, it was definitely him) and turned so he was facing me.
“Nothing. I’m just thinking about someone.” He said softly, his mouth quirked up in a small smile. The way he said it sounded so much more serious than I had, and it made me blush even more. God bless face masks.
“Is he hot?” I teased, trying to diffuse some of the tension. His gloved hand emerged from his cloak and stroked my face gently with the back of his hand.
“Understatement.” He purred.
“You should try and find him.” I said, my voice weak. He dropped his hand and slid it into his pocket.
“I could say the same to you.” He smiled. I raised an eyebrow, unsure if he could actually see it or not.
“I can’t. He made it very clear that he wasn’t coming.” I said, narrowing my eyes.
“Maybe he just said that so some of the more promiscuous girls wouldn’t get the wrong idea.” He said, tilting his head to the side.
“Maybe that idea sucked balls.” I teased.
“Or, maybe it was a great idea, because now the guy doesn’t need to be so careful.”
“It might be a good idea if they didn’t have an understanding.” I sniffed. He grabbed my wrist and pulled me to him roughly.
“An understanding which I have already expressed my feelings about.” He snarled.
“What feelings would those be?” I said, feigning innocence. He smirked and pulled me yet closer to him, bringing his lips to my ear.
“That it would be impossible for me to even try to stay away from you for another minute.” He breathed, sending shivers to every inch of my body. He pulled away and took a step back, his face solemn.
“Try harder.” I said curtly, taking a step back from him. Of course I didn’t want him to actually try to stay away from me, but I loved watching the fire build up in his eyes, even through that damn mask. Truth be told, he was easy to get fired up, and the results were more often than not completely satisfying, if not a little bit confusing.
“If that’s what you want.” He said, surprising me. He gave me a polite bow and turned away, strutting confidently further away from me. I couldn’t do anything but stare as he approached one of the girls across the room, who probably couldn’t have seen the exchange between us. Within moments, I saw her face turn red as she batted her eyelashes at him, and felt that jealousy under my skin again. To make matters worse, he spun on his heel so he was facing me, gave me a nod and a smirk, and turned back to her, his cloak shielding them both from me. I turned back to the table and sighed. Well, fuck, that didn’t work out as I’d hoped. I eyed a bottle of Jack Daniel’s on the bar and, after showing my ID, helped myself to a generous amount of it. I wasn’t much of liquor drinker, but I wasn’t sure that I really wanted to see my friends at this point, but I still didn’t want to miss out on drinking.
And besides, it’s not like I was going to have any fun now, right?

He came back, of course. That didn’t really surprise me. I was outside in the courtyard, still nursing that same glass of Jack when he came and sat next to me.
“Satisfied?” I snapped. He laughed bitterly.
“I was only teaching you a lesson.” He said softly.
“That being?” I retorted. He pushed my neck so I was forced to look at him, as he stared back with an intense gaze.
“If you want to play with fire, I will burn you. I’m not your lover, I’m not your boyfriend and I’m certainly not your bitch. Any attempts to manipulate me are therefore pretty redundant. Don’t think for a second that I need you.” He sneered. I gasped lightly and nodded, turning away.
“’m sorry.” I mumbled. He sighed and wrapped his arm around me, pulling me to him despite my protests.
“I never know how far is too far with you until it’s too late.” He sighed again, rubbing his hand soothingly up and down my arm. I could have asked him to clarify, but I didn’t want to. I wanted what I thought I understood to be true.
“You’re very important to me.” He said, confirming it, almost as if he’d read my mind. I let out a relieved breath and he smiled.
“You always have. Not just now but even back when I first met you: just some lonely kid who got bullied and used to ask me for help with his homework. I always felt protective of you.” He said, leaning his cheek on my head, which I rested on his shoulder.
“I thought you were an asshole.” I murmured, and he laughed.
“You still think I’m an asshole.” He said, pulling away and looking at me right in the face.I pursed my lips, trying to hide a smile.
“I appreciate the misty-eyed rhetoric, but I thought you were pretending to be someone else.” I reminded him.
“Do you want me to be someone else?” he said, his voice dropping, becoming huskier.
“That depends.” I smiled, chewing my lip. He raised his eyebrows, encouraging me to continue.
“How likely is it that I’ll get fucked by this ‘someone else?’” I asked, feeling risky. He smirked and ran a hand up my arm.
“Very likely.” He whispered, the sound going straight to my dick.
The moment was perfect, and because of that alone, something had to go wrong. It started with one or two raindrops, and quickly became a torrential rain.
“We should go inside.” He laughed, gesturing to my clothes that were becoming soaked. Just as I agreed, two of the supervising teachers ushered everyone who was outside to come inside. I was amused and relieved to see that they didn’t recognize Mr. Way as he held my hand tightly and pulled me in after him.

We ended up standing against the back wall of the hall, watching everyone else milling around and socializing around us.
“Where are your friends?” he asked suddenly. I shrugged – I’d forgotten them until now. He chuckled and slid his arm around my waist, his hand resting limply on my hip.
“Frank!” called a girl I didn’t recognize. She wore a tight blue dress and a white mask. Her blonde hair fell in long ringlets , and I wished I could remember her name, but I couldn’t, so I just smiled in greeting.
“I didn’t realize you were coming.” She said. She was obviously drunk, whoever she was.
“Um, yeah.” I said, a little awkwardly. She stumbled forward a few feet and landed in my arms, giggling like a child.
“I’m so clumsy.” She laughed, but then stopped abruptly, reaching up to touch my face.
Mr. Way realized what was happening before I did, and interjected.
“You’re drunk.” He said simply. She glared at him, stumbling to her feet.
“Who even are you?”
“Gee.” He replied without missing a beat.
“I don’t know you.”
“You don’t really know Frank either, do you?” he said, tightening his grip on my waist, almost possessively.
“He’s cute though, why can’t I kiss him?” she pouted. Mr. Way (er, Gee?) laughed and reached up to run a hand through his hair, but stopped himself when he remembered that he was wearing a disguise.
“Because I don’t like to share what’s mine.” He said simply. If she understood what he meant, she didn’t show it, as she gave him the finger and stumbled away. Even after she was gone, though, his hand didn’t move from my hip with an almost bruising grip.
“You can let go of me.” I said softly. He glared at me with that familiar fire in his eyes.
“No. I meant what I said, Frank. I don’t share.” He said, his voice cold. My heart raced in my chest at his possessive tone, and even more when his face softened and he gave me a lopsided smile.
“I’m being too much again, right?” he guessed. I shook my head.
“No…God, no. I like it.” I admitted, feeling myself blush.
“You’re beautiful.” He murmured.
“What’s your name?” I asked suddenly. I wasn’t even sure where it came from, the question just burst out of me. He laughed.
“I don’t want to tell you.”
“Why, afraid I’ll say it in school?” I teased.
“Yes, actually.” He said.
“What if I promise I won’t?”
“Nope. You don’t have very good self-control. It would be a disaster.” He chuckled. I gasped in mock horror.
“I do too have good self-control!” I insisted. He raised an eyebrow and pushed me against the wall, one arm across my chest, keeping me in place, the other holding my wrist above my head. His mouth was almost brushing mine.
“Don’t kiss me, and I’ll tell you.” He murmured, the movement of his lips almost causing them to touch mine. This was beyond unfair. I could taste him, could feel his hot breath in my mouth, and, most importantly, I could feel his erection pressing into the soft flesh of my thigh. Did it really matter if I knew his damn name? I almost gave in, but the self-satisfied smirk on his dumb face kept me going. I couldn’t let him win.
“I bet you taste so good, sweetheart.” He purred, rutting his hips up into my thigh.At any other time, I’d be afraid of us getting caught, but compared to the other couples in the room, Mr. Way and I were PG-13.
“Taste me then.” I challenged.
“Okay. You can’t do anything back though.” He said, his eyes laughing. I groaned, but was interrupted by the warm wetness of his tongue flicking out and licking my bottom lip. Shit.
“Sir, please.” I whispered urgently. He moaned and rolled his hips into me again.
“I was right, honey. Taste so good. C’mon baby boy, just kiss me.” He moaned gently.
“Fuck you.” I said, gritting my teeth. He beamed and took a step back from me, and I was sad to feel the pressure go.
“Okay, you win.” He said, still smiling. I grinned back at him.
“So, what is it, Rumplestiltskin?” I teased. He pursed his lips, then shook his head.
“Later.” He said, holding my hand.
“Fuck you.” I groaned. He smiled.
“Later.”

Notes

I know it's really long, and that's why I decided to split it in half. Sorry if it gets boring, but I really like the idea and yeah I'm dumb sorry <3