Phobia

Mono.pho.bia

Noun

The fear or terror of being isolated, alone or abandoned by those who are close.


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Three Days Later.


"Hood up and over the hair." Gerard's father ordered sternly as he watched his son fumble with his appearance in the mirror of the dimly lit bathroom.

"Why can't I just stay home? Nobody ever talks to me anyway." Gerard whined, turning to face his father with immense sorrow in his honey colored eyes. He roughly pulled his jacket over himself, his vibrant hair disappearing from eye sight.

Donald sighed, bringing his fingers up to the bridge of his nose, "This is important, alright? Be happy for me." He walked away with that, leaving Gerard a quiet mess of inner turmoil and self deprecating thoughts rushing about his mind.

Long story short, Gerard's father had been promoted to a higher place in his job, resulting in a huge banquet that the whole Way family was forced to take part in. Somewhat ironically, Donald worked for living section's government so having a Diff son didn't really go by quite smoothly with his co-workers. Nevertheless, it was no doubt that Donald was an excellent worker. He was loyal and did the best for his section which ultimately raised his spot to third chair. It was a big deal, he was now responsible for most decisions made throughout the section. So yes, lots and lots of stress.

Gerard wasn't happy about it. Not one bit. Ever since he'd listened to the radio a week before, he hated everything to do with the government and there was no way he was going to willingly attend a banquet that was dedicated to their boring and disgusting job. The things he had heard the week before basically scared him to death. There was light talk of Diffs of all ages, including children, being sent away from their sections by order of section leaders. Ripped from their parents and families, being taken to God knows where. That was about four living sections away from Gerard's, though, decently far away. But it was still terrifying. Who knows? What if he was next?

Gerard shook his head, scoffing at himself. Surely that was never
to happen. His father was high in the system, he'd never let his son be sent away. And if it were to happen, there was a huge chance that his family would just stuff him into hiding where he'd be safe from it all. Hopefully.

Gerard fixed his hood one last time to make sure every single strand of his hair was tucked away. He still didn't understand why he needed to be there. Donald Way had two sons after all. He could just bring Mikey without having to worry about being embarrassed every few minutes. He trudged out of the bathroom anyway and dragged himself toward the kitchen where everyone else was most likely waiting. As he grew closer to the kitchen's door, he could hear the faint and muffled voices of his parents who were clearly arguing yet again.

"Maybe it wasn't Gerard?" Gerard heard his mother shrill in a loud whisper.

An aggravated huff was let out from his father, "No, it most definitely was. They're the same exact band-aids that are in the upstairs cabinet."

There was a moment of uncomfortable silence. Gerard's heart dropped into his stomach.

Donna Way was now a complete wreck on the other side of the door as she faced her agitated husband. "I don't believe it was Gerard. He wouldn't touch another person, especially a stranger! He's scared of his own shadow!"

Gerard chuckled bitterly as quietly as he could manage. He was not scared of his own shadow. He was scared of his own family most of the time. And if you ask him, that's a big difference from a fucking shadow.

"Donna, we both know those boys aren't strangers." Donald replied to his wife quietly, his raspy voice darkening with each strained word.

"I don't want to talk about this, Don."

Gerard turned away from the door abruptly. His parents had figured out that he'd given a Same a simple band-aid. It was apparent that Frank's probably knew about it too. Why was it such a bad thing? All he did was help Frank. He didn't want his hands to bleed, that was all. Gerard was just trying to help. That's all he ever wanted to do, no matter what the situation was. And the final thing his father said. What did that even mean? Gerard was in a loss. He'd never spoken to Frank before a few days ago. Maybe his father was just making a big deal out of things. He did that a lot.

"Are they fighting again?" A timid voice spoke to Gerard's right. Gerard turned slowly to face his little brother.

He shrugged, lying through his teeth, "I think they're talking about taxes."

"Dad doesn't have to pay taxes." Mikey returned cautiously, cocking his head a bit.

Gerard bit his bottom lip, "Taxes for other people, Michael. That's what I meant." There was slight annoyance in his voice which immediately caused Mikey to back down, his shoulders slumping as he went quiet in front of his brother.

"Do you think the Iero's will be at the banquet?" Mikey asked, scratching at the tie that was snug around his thing neck.

"Dunno." Gerard remarked. "Why do you care?"

"Because Frank told me that I was his new friend and he also told me he wants to talk to you again-"

Gerard almost gasped, "What?"

"Y-yesterday at um, lunch he told me he-he wanted to talk to you again because you're um, kind and I don't remember eveything else he told me.." The younger brother uttered, staring down at his hands.

Gerard was about to ask more questions but was interrupted by his parents erupting from beyond the kitchen door, hand in hand as they gestured for their sons to follow them into the car. Wrapping his arm around Mikey's shoulder, Gerard guided his brother out of the house alongside him.

The car ride to the Town Hall wasn't very climatic. Nobody talked to each other and Gerard was sure the tension was because of his own presence. There was a split second in the car where Gerard pushed his hood back due to excessive sweating but was of course berated by his mother which ended with him reluctantly putting the hood back over his head. He hated it. Absolutely fucking hated it to an extent where words couldn't express it enough.

He even expected his family to walk in front of him and faster than him when they entered the Hall, making it seem as if they had no idea who Gerard even was. He didn't care. He was too used to it by now. He dragged his feet on the marble floors of the wide hall, his family a good fifteen feet in front of him. He cringed on the inside, he could feel everyone's eyes glued to him as he trekked through crowds and crowds of people who were obvious Sames. Gerard didn't even know where he was supposed to be going but he still continued forward even when he lost sight of Mikey and his mother.

After minutes and minutes of weaving through people and poking around corridors, Gerard found the event room. Waves of anxiety flourished in his veins as his eyes skimmed across the large room, single white pillars held up the roofing that was most likely higher than seventy feet. There must've been about a hundred tables scattered across the room, large vases of assorted flowers were placed highly upon the white and sequined table clothes. Gerard beamed as he gazed at the plants. It was unusual for flowers to be in a room that contained Sames since they absolutely hated anything that Diffs were associated with. Perhaps special events were an acception for them. They could've even been fake flowers.

Subsequently searching for a few elongated seconds, Gerard found the table that his family belonged at, made obvious from a script written sign stuck inside the flower vase that simply said, "Way." He pulled his hood over his face a little higher to try and hide his face from the few people that were watching his every move with looks of subsided horror on their prissy faces. As said before, Gerard didn't give a single shit. He was too used to it, like a routine.
Gerard only noticed the quiet classical music playing as he took a seat next to his brother, being as subtle as possible in case people were still watching.

"Where are Mom and Dad?" Gerard questioned Mikey. He grabbed the wine glass that was filled with water in front of him and took an elongated and dramatic sip.

"Talking with the Toro's." Mikey answered boredly and dropped his chin into his palm.

"Toro's?" Gerard clarified, raising an arched brow, "Isn't their son a Diff?"

"Yeah. One of them is, I'm pretty sure. Think his name is Ray or something."

They didn't say anything to one another after that and silently listened to the voice around them. Time passed slowly without anything eventful other than caterers coming around with foods that Gerard and Mikey had never even heard of before. They smiled awkwardly at each other as they tried the food, usually spitting it out in the end.

"Oh my god." Mikey said suddenly, his eyes fixated at the other end of the room.

Gerard squinted his eyes, "What?"

"That's Frank!" Mikey exclaimed, pointing to a raven-haired boy that was a distance away from where they were sitting. Sure enough, it was Frank. He looked rather dazed and lost, his back leaned against a pillar with his arms crossed as he kept his own company. Gerard simpered a little, noticing that Frank wasn't wearing his dumb tie and his hair wasn't gelled back either, he must've despised being there just as much as Gerard did.

"Should we go talk to him?" Mikey asked his brother excitedly, bouncing up and down in his seat.

"Maybe we should wait until he comes over here himself, okay? They're staring speeches and stuff anyway." Gerard replied, nodding his head to the podium in front of the room where his father was standing, organizing a handful of note cards. It was probably a twenty minute speech of how thankful he was for his promotion and both of the Way children were dreading it.

Frank, on the other hand, was bored out of his damn mind. He too was forced to attend with his parents since his father was in fifth chair. And lets just say, Mr.Iero was not happy to hear that Donald Way was promoted while he remained in the same spot. Frank didn't care. He wanted to go home and watch Space Chimps and eat something that didn't have kale or organic nuts in it. He didn't understand the organic part, weren't all nuts organic anyway? They were from the Earth in the first place. Fucking vegans.

Frank's parents along with his sister had drifted away from him at some point, probably to make conversation or talk about the Way's with either the Urie's or the Bryar's. Both of those families were assholes, Frank would swear his life on it if he had to, just to prove it true.

He was bored out of his mind, flickering his emerald green eyes across the room as Donald Way began his dreadfully boring speech. Frank hadn't come across anyone he'd known so far, which didn't bug him much. It was better off he didn't interact with anyone at the moment. He figured Gerard an Mikey would be in the room somewhere, and he didn't realize he was looking for them until his eyes landed on the table where they were sitting. Frank could have laughed when he saw the angsty and bored look plastered across Gerard's porcelain face, his eyes fixed on his proud father speaking before everyone. The speech was just as sappy as Frank thought it would have been, and it made him sick to his damn stomach. Sappy things were not for him. Never ever.

Frank didn't even realize he was walking toward the Way's table until he was about two feet away from them and he silently cursed himself for making the decision. If his parents caught him within siz feet of Gerard, they'd probably string Frank limb from limb. That threat stood even more seriously ever since they figured out that Frank innocently accepted two band-aids from the Diff, the discussion about it was not pretty either. It was filled with screaming from Mr. Iero and fake tears from Linda as she dramatically sobbed that her son was becoming a premature Diff. Even Frank's sister could tell that they were trying to bullshit him into to staying away from Gerard.

But was Frank going to listen?

Hell no.

Mikey was the first to notice Frank standing behind them, and he practically squealed when they made eye contact. "Gerard! He's here."

Gerard turned his head slightly, giving Frank a nod and smile, then turning his attention politely back to his father.

"Hello." Frank contended, waving a little.

"Do ya wanna sit?" Mikey asked eagerly, gesturing to the chair between him and Gerard. Frank thought for a moment, then nodded, deciding to just give into it.

"Third chair, huh?" Frank imparted as he plopped himself into the chair.

"Yup." Mikey replied, popping the 'p'.

Frank nodded again, unsure of what to say. He looked over at Gerard who was still watching his father, his eyes drooping suggesting that he exhausted. It was quarter to 10pm, so Frank understood. Frank then noticed Gerard's hood which slightly made him frown, if everyone knew he was a Diff then why did he need to cover it? In a way, it was inhumane. Although he steered away from Diffs and everything they were involved in, Frank didn't necessarily think that they should've been treated as if they weren't people. And he most definitely did not think that they should be ripped away from their families and sent away, according to the radio news channel that he was forced to listen to every morning on account of his parents.

Tapping Mikey's wrist and gaining his attention, Frank pursed his lips and whispered, "Does your brother wear a hood every time he's in public?"

Mikey nodded. "Dad gets angry with him sometimes if he doesn't."

Frank didn't reply and just leaned back in his chair. He couldn't judge Mr. Way's parenting, but he didn't think it was fair. Especially since his son was a genuinely nice person. That was when Frank decided he needed to talk to Gerard. One on one.

"Gerard?" Frank called out gently over whoever was speaking at the podium.

Gerard turned toward Frank's voice, unintentionally batting his eyelashes with his half lidded eyes from being so tired. Frank swallowed and locked his jaw, looking at Gerard's rosy cheeks. Gerard's bullies were somewhat right, he did look like a fairy, but not in a bad way.

"Yes, Frank."

"Um, I'm kinda.. I'm sorry I snapped at you the other day. It was really rude and I was stressed and didn't know how to talk to you." Frank said quickly, stuttering more times than he could imagine. Suddenly, the lights in the room went dim leaving the boys trying to adjust their eyes.

Gerard stared at Frank, "You don't need to apologize. You have family rules, I respect that."

Frank looked away and stared down at the scrapes on his palms from where his parents had taken away the band-aids, "I still didn't need to be cruel, just as you said."

Gerard simpered a bit, "I don't hold grudges, you have nothing to worry about."

Of course he doesn't hold grudges, he's too nice, Frank thought to himself as Gerard turned away from him yet again. Frank turned his attention to large flower vase in front of him, he understood why Gerard liked them so much, kind of. They were colorful, somehow pleasing to the eye. How could Sames hate something so...pretty?

No, I did not just use that word, Frank thought bitterly to himself.

"Do want some of my brownie?" A voice spoke out to him, releasing him from his mind. His eyes met Gerard's again as he held out a plate to Frank.

Frank forced a smile, "No thank you. It's yours."

Gerard shrugged and set the plate in front of Mikey. Almost as if commanded, the boy started downing the brownie.

"So, what if your parents see you over here?" Gerard mentioned and traced his finger across the designs on the table cloth.

"I'm dead meat." The dark haired boy answered, "But I wanna talk to you."

Gerard's finger stopped what it was doing and a puzzled look appeared on his soft facial features, "Why?"

"I don't know. You're nice. Nice people are hard to find."

"But I'm a Diff. You even made that clear."

"So what?"

Gerard's eyes widened and his eyebrows raised, "I'm sorry, but do you have like a multiple personality disorder or something-"

Frank was taken aback, "What? No! Of course not. I'm just..indecisive, I guess."

"Apparently so." Gerard muttered, "I don't get it."

"Get what?"

"I thought you didn't wanna be, and I quote, 'Buddy buddy.''' Gerard implied, sass edging his voice.

"Oh, I did say that." Frank sighed, "Listen, being friends would be cool, ya know? But we have to keep it on the down-low. I really do think you're nice, Gerard."

"I'll be your friend." Gerard giggled as if it were obvious.

"This brownie tastes like crap." Mikey said loudly, intervining on the boys conversation, "Oh yeah and, Frank, your parents are looking for you. I've been watching them for ten minutes."

"Oh hell." Frank mumbled, "Um, I'll see you guys tomorrow then."

Gerard nodded, giving him a goodbye as Mikey waved at him, watching as he rushed away into the sea of tables.

Notes

OKAY HI!! i have a few things to say because im a fucking motor mouth SO first off i hope ur not expecting them to fuck any time soon in this story because literally frank doesnt even realize he romantically likes gerard unlike like chapter 7 or something and gerards just dumb so hes like 'k u too pal' so thats that
and thennnn i had this crazy idea to start something on the side?? like it wont be another frerard until i finish this but i got this crazy idea for a mikey way & ray toro kinda thing becayse theyre so underappreciated??? is that like a bad idea??? probably. but if i end up doing it it will be a side project thing so it wont be updated as frequently as this is cause im an unorganized mess.
anywhore, feedback is cool too blah blah blah insert unpositive comment about myself here
take care of urselves kiddos. xxxx