When you go

Chapter 16
Franks p.o.v
I woke up on my bedroom floor, my head pounding and my body aching horribly. I slowly got up, afraid if i moved too quickly that i would collapse.
I looked for my phone, checking the time.
It was a little past seven, meaning my father was at his shitty job, which i had no fucking idea how he kept it.
I quickly go to my call log, clicking on Gerards name. It rings twice before he picks up.
“Hello?” He said, his voice tired.
“Gee…” I croaked out, my voice extremely horse and panicked.
“Frankie? What's wrong honey?” He asked, his voice now alert.
“Please, please come over. I don’t think i can move.”
“Okay, love, I’m going right now. I’ll be right there, angel, don’t move.” He says quickly. He hangs up after that, now giving me a chance to respond. I sit back down on the floor, now taking in my surroundings. My room wasn’t completely trashed, but it was pretty fucked up. I could probably fix the damage though.
I feel my eyes sting, and i will myself not to cry. I can’t seem to hold it in though, it hurts too fucking much.
I begin to wonder where the fuck my mother is. If she was dead, i’d know right? I’d always assumed that she was, but what if she wasn’t? Where would she be? Why would she leave me?
I’m pulled out of my trace by thumping on the stairs. For a second i worry it's my father, coming back to hurt me more. I quickly dismiss the idea though, knowing it’s Gerard.
“Frankie? Baby?” Gerard says frantically, bursting into my room. He takes one look at my state and a horrified look crawls onto his face. Mikey and Ray stand behind him, there faces just as horrified.
“What did he do to you?” Gerard whispers. I wipe the tears from my face as he approaches me, holding his arms out.
“I’m gonna pick you up, okay?” He asks quietly. I whimper and nod, silently agreeing. He leans down, scooping me up into his arms. He takes me into the bathroom, tightly holding me to his chest until he sets me on the toilet seat.
“Mikey! Get me some rubbing alcohol, gauze, and neosporin, please.” Gerard calls to Mikey. He comes to the bathroom, searching the cupboards.
“Frankie, i need to undress you so i can get the blood off you, okay?” He asks gently, as if speaking to a wounded animal. I nod, letting him reach for my shirt. I lift my arms, allowing him to take off my shirt. He slips it over my head, gasping at my body. Evidently, it was because of the bruising and all the other wounds. My chest and stomach were more purple and black then flesh. I can’t even begin the explan how the wounds look, from where my skin had torn from being hit too many times.
He begins to slide off my pants, leaving my boxers on. Mikey hands Gee all the supplies he asked for and walks out of the bathroom.
Gerard gets a washcloth, wetting it with warm water. I hiss as it touches my skin. He looks at me apologetically, and tells me he’s sorry.
I barely notice as he cleans the rest of my skin, except for when the washcloth came in contact with any of my open wounds. Eventually he stops, lathering my body in neosporin and putting gauze over some parts of my body. The whole time I silently cry, my emotional state being very low.
“Gee,” I croak. “Can you get me a mirror?” I ask quietly. He looks doubtful, but gets me a small mirror out of the cabinet. I pause before a I take the small mirror, worried by what i’ll see.
The majority of my face is bruised and i have a split lip. To say i looked and would be an understatement. I looked completely fucking wrecked.
“Oh.” I said. He just looked at me sadly.
“Can...can i hold you?” He asks quietly. I nod quickly.
“Please.” I respond. He picks me up, but instead of just setting me on his lap, he takes us to my room. He lays me down, slipping off his shoes before he gets into bed with me. He wraps his arm around my waist, snuggling me closer. I feel slightly vulnerable, but it wasn’t a bad feeling.
“Go to sleep, baby.” He whispers.
“What about school?” I whisper. He just shushes me, and begins to run his hands through my hair. I let my eyes slip close, enjoying the way his breath let a soft sensation on my skin.
*****
When i wake, i’m alone and the house is dead silent. To my surprise, my room isn’t a mess anymore. Gerard must have cleaned it.
I begin to move, my body feeling a little stronger. I stand up, searching or some sign Gerard was still here. His shirt was on my desk along with a note, written in permanent marker.

To my love,
I cleaned your room, i hope that’s okay. If i’m not here when you wake, i just went to get food for you and the boys. Mikey and Ray should be downstairs.
Call for them if you need anything, love.
Yours truly,
Gerard.

The note makes me smile, knowing how much he cared. I quickly pull on some sweats and walk down stairs, slowly, in case my legs gave out. I hear faint voices, talking quickly, urgently.
“He can’t stay here.” Someone says firmly.
“His father could have us arrested if we try to have him live at our house.”
“Wait, if the guy is abusing him, why would he care that much?”
“Cause he’s sick! He does it for fucking fun!” The first voice said.
I had heard enough. I walk into the kitchen, where Gerard, Mikey and Ray are having their discussion.
Gerard’s head snaps up when i walk in, his face melting into a small smile.
There’s pizza and soda on the table, not even opened yet.
“Morning love.” Gerard says, walking over to me. Even if we weren’t an official couple, we sure as hell acted like it. He wrapped his arms around me waist, kissing my forehead. I hum happily in his arms.
“Morning Gee.” I say quietly, my voice horse still. We break apart, but he still holds onto my hand. He pulls out a chair for me, kissing my head as i sit down.
“You okay, honey?” He asks softly. I just nod, trying to blink away the tears that spring into my eyes. It felt like every time someone asked me if i was okay, it made it worse.
“It’s okay baby.” He coos softly. He lifts me up, earning a surprised sound from me, and sets me on his lap. I lay my head in the crook of his neck, enjoying the way his heart sounded underneath his skin.
“You gotta eat something okay?” He asked softly. He gets one of the plates already set out on the table and puts three pieces on it. He carefully pours two glasses of soda too, and sets a glass in front of me along with the plate. I sit up on his lap, causing his hands to fall limply on around my waist.
I pick up a piece of pizza, taking a small bit. Everyone else starts eating too, conversation filling the room.
I don’t listen to what they’re talking about, i just sit there, not even really thinking about anything. Mikey flashes me a few concerned looks, but everytime he looks at me i just smile.
No reason to show someone the pain if they can’t help, right?
Eventually the talking stops and everyone's eyes seem to fall on me.
“Frankie?” Gee asks. I look up at him, my head lying on his chest.
“So, uhm, i know your birthday is still a couple of weeks away, but i really don’t like you staying here. I understand if you don't want to, but, erm, do you maybe wanna live with me?” He asks nervously. It was only three weeks away from my birthday, but after this...whole thing, it was hard to say no.
“Gee...aren’t you worried? That he’ll call the cops?” I ask gently. He sighed.
“Yeah, but even if he does we’ll tell them he’s been abusing you.” He says sadly.
“But...where would that leave me? In foster care?” I squeak out.
“Well, yes, but Frankie it would be a short time in foster care. I don’t think i can deal with this again.” He told me.
“Okay,” i sighed. “Fine, yeah, help me pack.” I say dismissively. He looked shocked for a minute, his eyes wide.
“Seriously?” He asked, a smile creeping in his voice.
“Yeah, of course, honey. You thought i’d say no?” I asked playfully.
He shrugged a little, still smiling.
“He gets home soon, so we need to start packing right now.” I announce, starting to get up.
“No, babe, stay here. We got it.” Gerard says getting up. I shake my head.
“You guys don’t have to do that.” I protest.
“No, we don’t, but we are.” Mikey says smiling. I groan, but don’t press it further. They go upstairs, leaving me alone in the kitchen. I start to search for my things around the house, only finding photos of my mom and me. I began to venture down the hall, towards my father's room. I had only been in there twice, both times to take back things he’d taken from me.
The first time it was to get back my phone and the second time to get Pansey, my guitar. I hadn’t touched Pansey in months, due to my depression. The last time i saw it, it smelt of beer and smoke, and something stale that i couldn’t put my finger on. It was kind of a boring room, but for some reason i felt it harbored secrets.
My hand rests on his cold doorknob, and for some reason it sends a chill through my body. I open the door slowly, afraid of making any noise. I slowly etched into the room, sitting on the bed carefully. The room was slightly messy, but actually nice looking. This surprised me, considering my father's personality. I start looking in the drawers of his nightstand, finding nothing of interest. I look in his closet next, nothing there either. I sigh, getting on my knees and looking under the bed. There was a couple of boxes and a pair of shoes. One box was velvet and smaller than the others, making me wonder what exactly was so special about it.
I pull it out slowly. The box itself made me frown, making me feel as if there was something horrible about it. I open it slowly, scared to look inside.
The first thing i saw was a photo of my father when he was younger, with a girl. My mother. In the photo my father's arms was wrapped around her and she was gazing up at him as if he were the greatest thing to walk the earth. The way Gerard looks at me. They were standing in front of this house, my house with a moving van next to them. It was when they first moved in, i presumed. They looked happy and my father looked...harmless. Nothing like he is now. I move on from the picture, slightly shaking as i do so. There were more like that, some of just them, some of me when i was a newborn baby. As i moved from pasture to pasture, i couldn’t help but notice that the older i got, the more their smiles faded, the more unhappy they looked. Finally, i got through them all, landing on a letter with my fathers on it. I quickly opened it, nervous to find what's inside.

Dear Frank,
Why haven’t you responded to all my letters? I’ve written many, yet you never respond. I’ve decided this is the last one i will write.
How is our son? His birthday is in just a few short weeks, i suppose. Sometimes i wonder why i keep track of these things.
I have some news. I am pregnant with a baby girl. I hope to be a good mother to her, as i have never been to my baby boy. I hope to raise her and cherish her, as i was never able to with Frank jr.
I hope you’ll respond to this letter.i’m moving in a week, so my new address will be at the end of this letter.
Yours Truly,
Linda.
9/26/16
Oakland Ave #708 Trenton, New Jersey

I couldn’t believe my eyes. My mother, the women who gave birth to me, who convinced me, wasn’t ever able to love me. And she lives an hour away! She’s pregnant!
My anger soon turned to pain, leaving me with an aching heart and weeping eyes. My sobs were angry and loud, echoing through the downstairs of the house. Soon enough, Gerard finds me. I’m a complete mess on the floor, sobbing my heart out.
I don’t even hear him come him, my sobs are so loud. He doesn’t say anything, just takes me in his arms and holds me for a while. He rocks me back and forth in his arms, whispering softly in my ear.
After a while my sobs stop and i stare up at him, allowing his presence to calm me.
“What is that baby?” He asks gently, as if he would sent me off again. He gestures toward the letter, a concerned look on his face. I just shake my head and he seems to understand because he just nods.
“We have to go baby.” He says softly. I nod and stand with his help. I put the box back, but take the letter. He takes my hand as we walk out to the living room where Mikey and Ray sit. Mikey is sitting on Ray’s lap as he pressed soft kisses on his lips. The sight is really sweet and makes me wanna ‘aww’ at them, but i don’t.
“We gotta go guys. His dad will be here soon.” Gerard says gently. Mikey pulls away from Ray, smirking a little as he did so. I assume my stuff is already in Gerads car, because we don't grab anything on our way out. Me and Gerard get in the back, not even buckling up. I just lie across his lap as he plays with my hair. I let my eyes slip close, willing myself to sleep. I hear the car start, and hushed murmurs and then i don't hear anything at all.

Notes

Sorry i haven't updated since last week beauties.
I hope you guys liked it!
-May <3