He Likes Me

Linda Iero didn't know what to after she heard the door slam closed. She'd heard her son and his... partner, arguing, knew it was about her, but she couldn't bring herself to feel guilty. Her son's partner shouldn't have expected Frank to tell him everything about everything; shouldn't have expected her son to be pressured into revealing something he didn't want to reveal. It wasn't right! Nothing about this situation was right!

She didn't know what to do when Frank didn't reappear immediately and she was made to stand there, feeling nervous and mildly irritated, half hidden behind the ridiculously large sofa. Before, when Linda had first arrived, she was too focused on winning Frank's trust and forgiveness and she hadn't had the chance to assess his surroundings, but now she did she could see the house he'd been living in for the past months.

Although, mansion was a more accurate description of this place. The sitting room in itself was larger than the entire first floor of her own house, and it was a true least double the height. All those months she'd spent fretting over her only son, worrying over whether he was homeless, frightened, hungry... and all along he'd been here? Living in this palace?

She really didn't know what to do when Frank reentered the room, loud, ugly sobs ripping through his chest as though he was being torn open from the inside out. Honestly, she thought, his... partner only left the house! It wasn't as if he'd died! - so why was Frank getting so wound up? It really wasn't normal behaviour... her son should have been out partying and studying and worryinga about his future; not playing house husband for some unappreciative moron who slammed doors whenever things didn't go their way! Frank was too young to be involved in a serious relationship, and definitely too young to be involved with a twenty-something year old!

Maybe she would have complained to her son about his questionable choices if she didn't know exactly what that would get her - a slammed door and instructions never to return again - and maybe, maybe she would have asked frank to move back in with her if he hadn't sat down right beside her just then and laid his head on her shoulder. He was obviously looking for comfort and with his partner gone, she was the one person left to provide it.

Frank was eighteen, after all, and he was old enough to make his own choices. If he wanted to be a house husband to a twenty-something year old unappreciative moron then...well. That was his choice.

And really, Linda didn't have any right to judge who her son was living with as long as they didn't force him to move out with nowhere to go when they found out who he really was...

"He's gone!" Frank wept, clinging to her shoulder as though he wanted a hug but was too afraid to initiate it. Like he was too afraid she would refuse him... the thought made her feel guilty. She opened her arms and pulled her son to her chest, one hand on the back of his head and one on his back like she used to do when he was little.

"I'm sorry, Frank." She cooed, not yet familiar enough with him yet to call him 'honey' like she used to but not wanting to appear cold or indifferent to his pain. "I can go if you want?"

It stung a little when Frank didn't immediately say no. She hadn't really meant it when she'd offered to leave; she had only just got here! - Only just gotten to see her son again! She wasn't going to give that up already for some unappreciative fucking moron!

Then finally he shook his head and sniffed quietly before choking on his tears and being unable to stay quiet any more. Linda really didn't know how to handle this - she was used to comforting hysterical toddlers and young children, but she wasn't accustomed to comfortingly hysterical teenagers, nearly adults.

She patted the boy's back and muttered as many soothing words as she could think of, but nothing seemed to calm him down until he received a message from his precious Gerard.

Gee ❤️: I won't be coming back before my appointment so don't wait up.

That was it. No 'I love you', no kisses, no mention of their previous argument. This just served to make Frank cry harder until Linda was forced to pry the device away from his hands and fling it haphazardly behind her. She didn't care if it broke - not if it was hurting her son - and anyway, Gerard could afford at least a thousand more where that came from so it really didn't matter.

"You don't understand Mom!" Frank cried, his voice raspy and thick with tears. "I love him! - I need him! He's - he's everything to me..."

His words trailed off into sniffles and broken sobs until Linda was so upset on Frank's behalf that she couldn't bear to tell him that what he had just described didn't sound like a healthy relationship. To have one party utterly dependant on the other, whilst the other didn't mind leaving to go God knows where with only a text telling their partner 'not to wait up' wasn't a
particularly fair balance, and Linda didn't like that her son was the weaker of the two.

"It's okay," Linda promised, stroking Frank's hair and half wishing she was wrong. "He'll come back."

***

"Gerard, you were early today."

"Mhm."

"Do you want to tell me why that was? You're not usually early..."

Dr Hawthorne tilted her head to the side; her face the perfect mixture of inquisitive and friendly to be seen as inviting as oppose to threatening. Gerard almost wanted to confide in her...

He'd walked around for three hours straight, not laying any mind to what he was doing, before realising he couldn't just hang about with no purpose any longer. He dragged himself into a coffee shop, ordered a drink just so he wouldn't be asked to leave, and stayed there until it was time for his therapy appointment. Except he must have been so eager to get out of that God awful cafe blasting pop songs that literally hurt his head that he didn't realise he was ten minutes early until Dr Hawthorne pointed it out.

If it had been anyone else, Gerard though, any other patient, the woman would have just let it go. She might have made a passing comment on it, but she wouldn't have over-analysed it, but because it was Gerard - Gerard, who hated any kind of change - she did just that until she assumed he must be running away from something at home. She was right, of course, but Gerard didn't want to get into that when they did just barely walked through the door.

"I didn't have anything better to do." Gerard shrugged in what he hoped was a nonchalant way and let his eyes flicker over to his therapist's face to see if she was fooled. She wasn't, of course.

"Was there something you wanted escape, Gee?"

And there was the nickname again, specifically used when she was prying for information that she knew the patient didn't want to give. So transparent.

"Escape? No. What gives you that idea?"

"You're not usually early..." she repeated, raising an eyebrow and crossing her legs in an innocent yet somehow patronising way. Gerard really needed to find out how to do that; it was an intimidating move. He could try it in his interviews.

But surely it wouldn't hurt to tell her, right? She was a therapist, and weren't therapists supposed to help you solve your troubles and stop you from worrying so damn much? No, it couldn't hurt to tell her... but what should he say? 'Oh yeah, I've been sleeping with this guy I created who then came to life!' No. that would land him in a mental hospital faster than he could say "fucking crazy".

"Gerard?" Dr Hawthorne chided when she saw the Mann was on the brink of saying something.

"Is there anything you'd like to tell me?"

What harm could it do? He could pick and choose which bits he told her and which bits he kept secret so that he didn't sound insane, and she wouldn't be any the wiser.

"I've been— I've been seeing someone." He admitted finally, biting his lip nervously and wishing he could take the words back. Of course he wouldn't benefit from telling her. He'd been a fool to think he would; she'd just see another sense of his insecurity she could manipulate and receive a big fat paycheck at the end of the month. But... Dr Hawthorne didn't seem like that. Maybe she could be trusted.

"Seeing someone as in... romantically?" The woman checked, and Gerard nodded. "Okay, how long have you been seeing them for."

That was a tricky question. Did he tell her he'd known Frank for a month, like Frank truly believed?— Or did he say they'd only met less than a week ago, like Gerard knew to be the truth? Then he'd have to say they lived together and she would tell the, it was too soon... but I feel he said a month she'd ask him why he'd never mentioned Frank before...

"Gee? How long have you been seeing this person for?"

Gerard, deciding to go with the safer option of saying almost a week, replied. "I met him on - on the day of our last session. When I was on my way home I met him and really liked him. We just... got along, you know?"

Dr Hawthorne smiled encouragingly.

"That's really great, Gerard! I'm so glad you've finally come out of your shell and started meeting people!" She sounded sincere, and Gerard couldn't see the harm in returning the small smile. This just seemed to make Hawthorne's grin even wider until she looked like her whole face was splitting in half. Who knew just sleeping with someone could make his therapist so happy? He knew his mother would be glad he had a boyfriend - hell, she was probably even glad he and Frank were fucking if it meant her baby wasn't all alone - but to know that a practical stranger who had no obligations to like him was pleased he was happy... Gerard couldn't describe the feeling. But it was a good one.

Then, of course, he remembered Frank and the arguement they'd had before he'd stormed out of the house childishly and his good mood dissipated. No, maybe Frank shouldn't have invited a stranger (to Gerard at least) into their home, but Gerard had promised that the house belonged to Frank as well so he was entitled to have friends over. Maybe he shouldn't have kept the person's identity secret, but he was allowed to have secrets! Gerard hadn't needed to storm out of the house over it! What if Frank decided he didn't want a stroppy, over-reacting, possessive drama queen for a boyfriend? What would Gerard do then?— He loved Frank! He didn't want Frank to leave him!

Dr Hawthorne, who must have seen the smile fall from her patient's face, leaned forward in her chair and placed the notebook that never seemed to leave her hand on the desk next to her chair. Somehow it made Gerard feel better - more at home - now that he knew Hawthorne was just going to listen to him talk for the next half hour rather than document his every word.

"We fought— I mean, we had a fight. Before I left the house. That's why I was here early."

"I see..." Hawthorne said slowly. "What did you fight about."

Gerard swallowed. She was going to think he was ridiculous; fighting over something so petty. She was going to think he was stupid, unworthy of love...

"He brought someone over to my house." He said finally, cringing at how pathetic he sounded. He was pathetic, getting angry at his boyfriend over nothing. "I - I didn't know who it was. He wouldn't tell me."

"He wouldn't tell you?" The therapist repeated unnecessarily. "Do you know why?"

Gerard shook his head. He didn't know why Frank would want to hide his guest... unless, of course, he was having an affair with whoever it was. If that were the case, Gerard could just write a few lines on his typewriter and make it so Frank was deeply in love with him again.

As soon as the though entered his headline, Gerard was appalled. He'd promised - he'd sworn to himself - that he would never control Frankie like that again. He would never change the way he acted or the way he looked or the way he felt. If only the boy didn't make it so tempting to just tweak things here are there... make Frankie a little bit more dependant on Gerard than he already was...

"It was stupid. I guess I just got mad. I - I don't know why. I regret it now. I really don't know why I got mad."

"Allow me to make an assumption?" Hawthorne asked, waiting for Gerard to nod before continuing. "I believe you were jealous, Gerard." Gerard opened his mouth to argue, to deny the humiliating accusation, but the woman held her hand up to stop him.

"It makes sense, don't you think Gee? It's a new relationship; you feel insecure because you don't know if this man really likes you or not. You don't know whether you want something serious with him so you're constantly on edge around him."

Hawthorne watched Gerard thoughtfully as the man considered her opinion.

"I suppose— you're right about everything, I guess, except one thing."

"What's that?"

"Well... I know for a fact that I want something serious with him. I know it's only been a short while and I know you might not believe me, but I love Frank. I love him, and— and I really want something serious with him. I just hope he feels the same way."

Hawthorne smiled - a real, genuine smile rather than a 'yes-keep-talking-whilst-I-destroy-your-income' smile - and stood up, startling Gerard because the half hour session was not yet over.

"Well then I suggest you go tell him that."

Notes

Enjoy! <3
P.S: It would make me super duper happy if you could go check out my new story on Wattpad (I'm Trick101) called It's Only Just A Dream. Thanks! *blows kiss*