A/N: So in this A7X is still working at becoming a successful band, but I'm not bothering to sync up their true timeline. This is taking place in the present so we all don't have to deal with characters using technology and pop culture references from over a decade ago. Thank you for indulging my "laziness" and enjoy this Frank-centric madness and this pairing I like to call Brankie :)
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The plane had landed and he made his way off with the other passengers moving like a heard of sheep. He adjusted the straps of the backpack he wore and ran a hand through his black-dyed hair. It was shaggy with the fringe grown out just a little bit longer and messily swept out of his eyes to the side of his face. Those locks were an unruly mess, but looking like he just rolled out of bed suited the kid well. He entered the hustle of the terminal and fell into a zombie-like pace as everyone else in the airport hurried around him. To be fair he did feel a bit like a corpse. A six hour flight was more than draining especially when you hated flying. And not only was there anxiety from the flight; the young man just traveled across the country from the only home he knew to start some kind of insane adventure. And Frank Iero didn't do adventures.

He was a cute kid and on the short side but at least had a strong jawline going for him in the appearing manly front. Frank was one who was usually anxiously reserved at first meeting and carried a lot of mental baggage, but the kid was passionate and quirky and animated when he let his real self shine. He kept the weird and expressive side bottled up most of the time, but wore it on the outside in the form of his few tattoos, hoop lip ring and nose ring, and small ear gauges.

He had been one of those poor saps that got bullied throughout his latter schooling. A kid too socially awkward to have made close friends during those years. But he was approachable, and did manage casual friends and even a long time girlfriend as long as it was the other people doing the friendship/relationship work at the start. For the most part he was a kid that went out of his way to keep to himself. He had immersed himself in music, and after finally having the balls to dump his toxic ex-girlfriend two weeks ago, Frank had decided at the ripe old age of eighteen that living his life like a hermit wouldn't be bad at all. Or more so, he hopefully wished that him and Lynn could get back together someday and be happy like they were in the beginning. Idiot boy.

So just two weeks ago life was over, but here he was now. Lynn was (sort of) out of his life, high school was over, and he was entering the real world with a bang. If planning to travel around with strangers in a van was even considered 'real world'. This was probably a huge mistake. Frank didn't know how he got coerced into doing this. He just traveled 2800 miles to become a technician for an aspiring band he met once a year ago. It did help that his stepsister had moved out here to California a few years ago and was dating one of the guitarist. And it did help that he knew his way around stage setup and various instruments. But Frank had only ever worked at his father's bar. The kid loved helping out on gig nights. He loved the atmosphere. He loved the music. He felt a part of the music scene in his own special way that happily didn't require any attention on him. His father's club was his comfort zone, but here Frank was miles and miles from it. This was not a 'Frank thing' to do at all.
But if there was anyone that could talk Frank into taking leaps of faith it was his older stepsister. Even his father gave him a big push to get out into the world, and a child leaving home to become a goddamn roadie wasn't usually something a parent supported. But Frank's dad was anything but a normal parent. Frank received the loving fatherly speech: "Stop trying to fight this, you little shit. You're nervous about meeting people or whatever? Suck it up. You're on a little ball with seven billion of 'em. You gotta get out and meet at least a couple of 'em sometime. You've got this opportunity thrown out at you to travel and experience crazy shit. You're young. Go have fun. Make mistakes. But for the love of god, if you get anyone fuckin' pregnant I will personally be the one to neuter your balls...if her father doesn't get to you first. Just go, BooBoo. You won't be alone; you'll have your sister there. And when you're done you can come on home; your job here will be waiting for you."

His dad was insane. And pretty fucking awesome. And also a douchebag for being that final drive to get Frank to take a chance. But the real blame for this whole nerve-wracking situation was definitely on his stepsister. Chelsea put this whole thing in motion. She made the offer. She asked for the help on behalf of the band. Frank always had trouble saying no to her anyway. Chelsea was the perfect big sister. Even when they first joined as a family at ages eight and twelve, they clicked, and she had become Frank's only go-to person that he could talk to about almost anything. She was looking out for her new 'band family', and yeah, it was cool that she wanted her little brother to share the experience. And sure, maybe in the pit of Frank's chest he was bursting with excitement over what the next few months (or however long he lasted away from home) had in store. Because he really did dig these guys' music, and it would be amazing to be a tiny bit a part of it. Frank just had to get over this initial meeting thing. Now technically he met the band before when they played at his dad's club, but the only real interaction included Frank just saying 'hey' and 'no problem', then pretty much wordlessly helping them set up and break down. Frank hoped to god everyone didn't think he was too awkward. He hated that he got so nervous. He wished he could just enjoy the excitement. Because he really was so goddamn excited to go through with this. But Frank also simultaneously wanted to hide under a rock.

Frank shuffled along and let out a determined sigh as he entered Terminal C where he was going to be picked up and brought to his new home. This wouldn't be such a big deal at the moment if his damn flight hadn't been delayed so now Chelsea wasn't able to pick him up. He picked a spot on the wall to lean against and took a moment to smooth out his rumpled faded black Banner shirt. An arm band tattoo peeked out from under the left short sleeve, and the Black Flag logo was also inked further down at the bottom of his bicep. Frank pulled his phone from his pocket and sent out a call to a new contact he added on Chelsea's instructions earlier this afternoon: one Brian Haner Jr., the lead guitarist of the band he'd be working for. Frank grimaced as he listened to it ring. Talking on the phone sucked, especially when you were calling someone you only ever said "hello" to about a year ago.

"Hello?" he heard a male voice answer.

"Um, hey. Is this Brian? I'm Frank, Chelsea's brother."

"Hey. Yeah, dude. I'm your chauffeur today. I assume you landed and are ready to roll?"

"Yeah."

"Cool. I got here early. I'm sitting right out side of baggage claim. In case you have no idea what I look like: I'm wearing a Pantera shirt and I'm easily the best looking person in the general vicinity."

Frank couldn't help a small chuckle. "Alright. I think I'm right by you. I'll see you in a second then, thanks." Phone away, and Frank ran a hand through his unkempt hair and made his way over, his hazel eyes scanning over the rows of seats.
And there he was, Mr. Pantera shirt. With a tight anxious chest, Frank walked closer, and the man stood as they made eye contact seemingly recognizing the boy. Brian looked familiar to Frank too. Not so much from recalling the year ago meeting, but from a few pictures he saw in the past from Chels. The twenty-year-old was taller and stronger built; his exposed arms covered in colorful tattoos. He was this laidback rugged kind of handsome with defined cheekbones and jaw, a white bandana atop long dark hair, confident brown eyes, and a bit of scruff on his chin.

"Frank," Brian said in greeting, sending him a smile and holding his hand out for Frank to shake.

Frank showed a friendly smile in return and let his hand clasp into Brian's firm grip. The man had to be a good guy if Frank's sister had sent him in her place.

"Nice to meet you, again I guess. I remembered you were short, but holy shit, I think you might actually be tinier than Johnny. Looks like our crew got bumped up to having two midgets."

Frank had felt pretty tense in those first few seconds, but with the teasing he actually relaxed into a real smile. It was an odd comfort, since friends always went for the short jokes, just not usually right away like this. And Frank wasn't really that short. 5'6" wasn't that bad, was it? Okay, it was.

"Hey I finally got a half inch on my dad so I at least have someone to make fun of."

"Do worry little man, the lack of height suits you. You're like, a pixie," Brian grinned. "While Johnny, you'll find on the other hand, is a retarded little gnome."

"Um, thank you?" Frank laughed. 'Pixie' was definitely one he hadn't heard before.

"Anytime," Brian winked. "So Chels wasn't lying when she told me you should only have a backpack with you, did she? Otherwise you're just gonna have to take a cab anyway."

"Uh no, I just have this," Frank answered shifting the pack on his back. "My dad had my stuff shipped ahead of me last week so I couldn't puss out," Frank let out a little chuckle, then looked to Brian quizzically. "Why?"

"I just don't have much luggage space," Brian smirked reaching behind him and grabbing a black helmet off the seat.

A motorcycle helmet.

Frank immediately swelled with a mix of nervousness and excitement. Motorcycles were fucking bitchin', and Frank dreamed of having one before he was old enough to drive. But he never in his life had actually ridden on one. And now he was supposed to jump on one with a guy that was basically a stranger.

"Ready to roll, Tinkerbell?"

Frank couldn't help but smile again. "Yeah, let's go."

They fell into step next to each other as they made their way to the parking garage, and Brian gave Frank's arm a slight nudge with his elbow before speaking. "So Chels vouches up and down over your techie skills. You ready to take it on the road, wee one?"

"No?" Frank laughed at himself as he spoke honestly. "But I'm really excited anyway."

Brian chuckled. "You should be. I'm sure your sister probably sugarcoated it. But as rough as it can be, it's a fucking amazing time. You're Chelsea's brother so you're already in, kid. So as long as you can hold your own with the bunch of us assholes, you're golden."

"Well, if you're considering yourself an asshole. I think I'll be alright." This was nice. Being able to talk with someone new and not feel incredibly taxed. Brian was acting like they were good friends already with the playful teasing nicknames, and Frank felt comfortable. This change up in life hadn't started off too bad after all.

"Oh," Brian smiled his smoothest smile, "I just tend to be a little nicer to people I think have a nice ass."

A silly smile broke out on Frank's face as he held in a laugh at that ridiculous comment. The kid was just coming from a part-time job back in Jersey as a busboy where the majority of his coworker friends had that 'let's sexually harass each other' sort of sense of humor. Thanks to that crew, Frank could definitely handle that kind of personality and dish it back out when he was in comfortable company. And to be honest, inappropriate joking pervs were a fun lot to be around. He could definitely get along with Brian.

"Thanks. But maybe you should buy me dinner first before you go straight to complimenting my ass, as amazing as it may be. And it's pretty damn amazing." Frank swelled with that pathetic kind of pride that he was able to carry on the joking conversation like any normal fucking human. It was the little things in life.

"Well shit," Brian laughed, "you'll fit in just fine, kid."

They had crossed the parking garage and Brian stopped beside a chopper, moving to its side bag and pulling out a spare half helmet. Frank just stared at the bike in a kind of silly excitement awe. It was a simple sort of beautiful, chrome and a charcoal gray paint job. A gorgeous hunk of sleek metal.

A big smile was plastered on Frank's face. The nervousness had vanished for the time being; the bike was too badass. "Effin' rad."

"You ride?" Brian asked handing off the helmet.

"Never," Frank admitted with a shake of his head.

"So I get to be your first then, sweet," Brian stated rather suggestively with a wiggle of his eyebrows making Frank chuckle. The man pulled his helmet on and grabbed his set of keys from his pocket before taking a seat on the bike. "Climb on, pixie boy. And just hold on tight. It's not too far of a ride."

Brian pulled his visor down, and Frank smashed his own borrowed helmet on his head and fastened the chinstrap tight. Climbing onto the bike behind the man, Frank held on at either side of Brian's waist as his insides buzzed with excitement and just a dash of anxiousness. This was going to be awesome —as long as Brian didn't get them killed.

That engine had a beautiful roar that really came to life after they left the slow-moving confines surrounding the airport. Frank held on to Brian tightly as they raced down the highway. This was exhilarating, plain and simple. The speed, the warm wind in his face and whipping around him; it was freeing and a thrill. It was too loud for talking and that was more than fine. Frank was just happy to enjoy the ride. He kept his eyes closed most of the journey, just feeling the speed and the vibrations of the bike course through his body. He had to admit this was a pretty awesome start to this new phase of his life. Despite Frank's anxious reservations, he easily made friends with one of the band members already, was ecstatically riding on the dude's motorcycle, and Frank even held high hopes of getting enough into Brian's good graces for the man to teach him how to ride. It was a smooth start that made the kid believe the rest would be smooth sailing as well.

There were no worries in Frank's mind as they raced freely down a large pretty much traffic-less road, though he did tightened his grip on Brian as the man gained speed. And it was then in a split second that the man Frank had so stupidly put his life in the hands of suddenly took a sharp turn when the road was completely empty. With that harsh jerk he sent the bike swerving around into the opposite lane, like completing an insane 180° on the drop of a dime, and immediately the bike picked the speed back up, now racing back the way they came. That little stunt made Frank's heart stop. He had instinctively wrapped his arms fully around Brian's waist as the bike had sharply whipped and drifted into the opposite direction. He remained clung to the man, heart erratically racing as Brian drove on normally. Frank could feel Brian's body shaking, but Frank could tell it wasn't a shake out of fear; it was a body shake of laughter.

That fucking fuck.

It only took a minute before Brian pulled into an apartment complex parking lot that he had zoomed by earlier to perform that insane stunt. He parked and shut down the engine before pulling off his helmet. He rubbed his hand over Frank's, which were still locked around his waist, to get the boy to loosen his grip.

"We're stopped now," Brian snickered, a cheesy grin on his face.

Frank's heart was still pounding furiously in his chest, and his breathing not at all calm. He unlocked his hold on Brian hastily as soon as it processed in his delayed brain that they were stopped and the bike was off. Frank clambered off and stood beside the bike with his arms splayed out in a disbelieving manner as he shot Brian a baffled angry glare.

"What the fuck was that, asshole?!" Frank yelled, a bit out of character. He was not one for confrontation or to slip into his 'I curse like a sailor' vernacular so soon, but that little move Brian pulled out there definitely warranted some colorful yelling. "Are you fucking crazy?!" Frank hurriedly unfastened his helmet and promptly threw it hard at Brian, the man managing to catch it before it collided too hard with his chest. "I thought I was gonna fucking fly off! Jesus fucking Christ!"

Brian appeared to be biting back a laugh as he got off the bike as well and tucked the extra helmet away. "Aw, you think I'd let that cute face get hurt?" He teased, lightly knocking his fist against Frank's jaw playfully, just brushing off his little stunt as nothing. "I could feel that you had a good grip, and I've been riding my whole life. I know what I'm doing." Brian showed a cool confident smile. "You're safe with me. Trust."

Frank didn't say anything for a moment. His expression remained in a scowl, but slowly Brian's words sunk in and made Frank relax a little over the situation. They definitely shouldn't have, but Frank wasn't about to argue with himself about it just to get himself worked up again.

"Fuck," Frank breathed and brought one hand up to clutch over his heart; its beat still fast yet it was slowly but surely calming. "You're still an asshole," Frank wasn't able to stop the soft chuckle that left his lips. "Shit."

"Hey, I told you I was one. But come on," Brian prodded, "try and tell me that wasn't the biggest fucking rush you've ever had."

Well of course it was a goddamn rush. A racing heart and adrenaline coursing through his body. It's funny how you feel most alive when you think you're about to die. Now, overlooking the fact that his body could have become one with the pavement...yeah, that stunt out on the street was beyond cool. The speed and level of control; it was definitely awesome. Just, a little warning would have been nice.

"I guess I can't." Frank relented. "And I suppose post trauma and everything, it was maybe, kinda sorta fun," Frank admitted with a hint of a smile curling at his lips. A smile that he knew shouldn't have been there, but Frank rolled with his now calm thinking.

"Kinda sorta fun, huh?" Brian mused. "Nice, 'cause I was thinking the two of us could have lots of fun together." Brian grinned what had to be his best smile, standing rather nonchalantly with his arms crossed over his chest.

"You think so?" Frank asked overtly innocent. If he was still cool with Brian after that bike ride, then he could play along with the fake flirting exchange no problem. Frank was grateful that he was already comfortable enough around this man to act as such. This had been the craziest and best start to a friendship ever.

"I do," Brian had responded, his eyes roaming over Frank's form up and down.
This 'checking out' was blatant but not comically so, and it made Frank wonder a split second if this man was joking or not now. Frank bit at his lip ring, mentally cursing at himself when he felt his face get hot.

"Something wrong?" Brian's expression didn't change, his eyes moving up to meet Frank's as he questioned the blush on the boy's cheeks.

"No," Frank responded quickly, giving a shake of his head and tangling his fingers at the back his hair in a 'feeling awkward' habit. Best to just ignore and forget the past thirty seconds and move along, because all it had been was joking around. Definitely. Yup. "Uh, so, you have the key for me right?"

"Yeah. Almost forgot." Brian pulled one of the keys from his carabiner keychain and handed it off to Frank. "104B. It's the door on the right over there," Brian pointed. "I actually live on the other end of the building, second floor. It's an alright place. Might be a little cramped for you with three people sharing one of the smaller units, but there's a pool and shit you can get to through the back."

"Cool. Thanks."

"Well, I'll let you get settled then. I gotta head out to my dad's to help him with some shit."

"Alright. Thanks for the ride."

"My pleasure," Brian smiled coolly. "The least I could do. You traveled a hell of a lot farther to help us all out."

"I guess so," Frank shrugged with a small smile. "Just keep making awesome music and don't make me regret it."

"I'll do my part. I'll catch you later then." Brian clasped his hand on Frank's shoulder and gave it a little squeeze. "Welcome to Avenged Sevenfold, Tinkerbell."

Notes

So in this A7X is still working at becoming a successful band, but I'm not bothering to sync up their true timeline. This is taking place in the present so we all don't have to deal with characters using technology and pop culture references from over a decade ago. Thank you for indulging my "laziness" and enjoy this Frank-centric madness and this pairing I like to call Brankie :)