Fantastic Bastards in Monroeville (Frerard)

“Wake up, Gee,” Frank whispered, shaking me. Ugh. Do I have to get up now? I’m so tired…
I sat up and rubbed by eyes, then stretched as I stood up. The scent of food hit my nose, making my mouth water. I must admit that I was hungry.
“Here, Gee. I convinced someone to buy us food while you were asleep,” Frank said, handing me what looked to be a sandwich. I took off the paper wrapping and noticed that it is indeed a sandwich; it’s a bagel one with bacon, egg, and cheese. I took a bite, the food savory to my taste buds. I must admit it is pretty good, despite probably being high in fat. I’ll just eat half and give the rest to Frank.
“Thanks,” I said.
“You’re welcome,” Frank replied, taking a bite of his sandwich. “When we finish eating, we’ll head out. Sound like a plan?”
“Yeah, I guess so…,” I said, sighing deep down. I still think that escaping with Frank was a mistake. Not only am I stuck with someone that’s not all right in the head, but we have no place to sleep and barely anything to eat; we got lucky this time with the breakfast sandwiches. Staying in Monroeville all of a sudden seemed like the better option. At least there we had a place to sleep and were checked on so nothing bad happened. Here, we have nothing. But I couldn’t afford to lose Frank. Someone has got to be there to protect him, and he would not get that if he were to be transfered. That person is me.
We soon finished up our sandwiches and headed out of the alley we stayed in overnight. We began to walk down the street, unfamiliar faces passing us by. Frank looked so animated as he walked; he was that excited to see his daddy.
“This is gonna be great! My dad says that when we find him, we will go back to stay at his house. We’ll watch movies and eat junk food and stay up all night! It’ll be so much better than staying in Monroeville. Right, Gee?”
“Yeah...sure,” I said, going along with Frank’s false fantasy. I know I had to tell Frank the truth sooner or later, even though it would break his heart. I’ve come to the realization that we shouldn’t have escaped. This was a bad idea. We have barely any food, no shelter, and so on. What if something bad happens to us, like get murdered? Chris was right; the streets of NYC are unpredictable.
“You alright, Gee?” Frank asked in a concerned tone, looking at me worriedly.
“Yeah,” I said, lying. “I’m fine,”
“You don’t seem like it. Come on, tell me what’s on your mind,” Frank replied. I sighed deeply, deciding to tell half the truth of how I feel.
“Don’t you think that maybe escaping was a bad idea?” I asked. “I mean, we are stuck in the middle of New York City with no food, no shelter, and we’re putting ourselves at risk of something happening to us--”
“Gerard, we’ll be fine!” Frank whined. “We’ve got this. My dad says that when we get to him, he will take us in, and we will have a place to stay. I swear we will be fine!”
I didn’t know what to say. I just can’t say the truth about Frank’s dad. It would break his heart. But then again, I do know for a fact that Frank’s dad is not waiting for us. He’s not even alive anymore. Sooner or later I gotta tell Frank the truth, now that I know for a fact that this whole thing was a bad idea.
“Okay…,” I said, nodding my head. We continued to walk down the street in silence, not making eye contact with each other. We passed by a series of stores and restaurants, but I stopped when I came across a store that has a bunch of tvs in the display window. Frank stopped with me to look at the televisions that showed some commercial for some brand of shampoo. When the commercial ended, it went to a news station...and that was when I felt my heart stop. Our faces were on the screen, with a caption under us reading “Two patients escape from New Jersey mental hospital”. I seriously wish we’re dreaming…
“Two male patients, twenty-three year old Gerard Way and nineteen year old Frank Iero, have recently escaped from Monroeville Psychiatric Hospital,” said the reporter lady, a young woman with long blonde hair. “It was yesterday when the two patients escaped. The attendees here say that Frank and Gerard escaped through the main doors while a conflict with two other patients was taking place. Here are pictures of the escapees,”
The news channel cut back to the pictures of me and Frank, the mere sight of our faces making my stomach churn.
“If you see either of these people or know about their whereabouts, contact the authorities. This is Stacey Larson with NYCS news,” the lady spoke. The news channel then cut to another report about some murder that took place. I turned over to Frank, shock clear as day on my face.
“Oh...my...god…,” I said. “The whole world knows we’re missing,”
“Well, don’t just stand there! We gotta get going! We need to get to my dad before someone finds us!”
“Okay,” I said, continuing to walk. If only Frank knew the truth about his dad. I really wish I could tell him. Frank speaking about his dad is really starting to get annoying…
“Let’s put our hoods up so no one can see us,” Frank said.
“Good idea,” I replied, doing just what Frank suggested. We continued to walk down the street in silence, our hoods up and hiding our faces. As we walked down the street, I began to think of what we did yesterday. I’m questioning whether or not it was worth it for us to escape. If we never did this, Frank would have been sent to another institution, and I won’t be able to ever see him again. I keep telling myself that he needs me to protect him, but the people at the hospital can do that too, can’t they? That’s their job. But can they protect him from people like Bob and Jimmy, knowing how vulnerable Frank is? The more I asked myself these questions, the more I overwhelmed myself. Another thing I should have thought about before escaping with Frank is the fact that we are chasing after a delusion. Frank wants to find his late dad that was abusive son of a bitch. What’s gonna happen when he learns that his dad is never coming for us? Poor Frank will be heartbroken. God knows what Frank will do when that happens. I should have thought of all of this before leaving Monroeville with him. It’s too late now, though. We gotta suffer the consequences now.

_ _ _
We’ve walked for a long time. It had to be a good two hours we walked without taking any breaks. We finally stopped when we got to West Hudson park, Frank dashing ahead of me.
“Look! We’re finally here!” Frank exclaimed, pointing to a sign that read West Hudson park on it. I walked up to Frank, who looked in all directions for his dad. I just stood there and waited for the harsh but true reality to hit Frank that his dad was not really there to pick us up and take us to his house. A worried look flashed onto Frank’s face.
“Maybe he’s running late, Gee. Yeah, that’s gotta be it…,” he said. At that moment, I nearly felt myself snap. We were not going to wait for Frank’s dad to show up; he’s dead and was an abusive piece of shit to his own son! I can’t take this much longer. Frank needs to know the truth. I don’t care if it makes him upset. We need to fix what we’ve done. We need to turn ourselves in. I’ve realized that I can’t take care of Frank myself. The people at the hospital can. We need to undo what we’ve done.
“Frank...you need to know the truth,” I said. “Your dad is not coming for us,”
“But he is! We just need to wait a little longer! It’s okay if he’s late--”
“No,” I interrupted. “You don’t understand. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again--your dad is not coming for us! He’s dead! That supposed chip you have in your head that lets you talk to your dad? It’s a delusion. You’re hearing voices in your head. It’s all a hallucination. You’re sick, Frank. You need help!“
The look on Frank’s face was absolutely heartbreaking for me to see. It’s like his whole world around him was crumbling to the ground. His eyes were forlorn and full of discontent. His mouth hung open in shock. I just shattered all of this kid’s dreams.
“B-but Gerard...my daddy said he would be here…,” he muttered, his voice quivering. “He told me that...he would pick us up, so that we were no longer in Monroeville. He said he would help us…,”
“I know you wanna see your dad, Frank. I really do,” I said. “But your dad was not the person you think he is. He abused you and your mom. He beat you so bad he put you in a coma. He could have killed you, Frank. He died of alcohol poisoning. Your mom was right about him. He was the cheater. He was unfaithful to your mom. I know it really hurts to hear the truth, but you have to, Frank….You need help. We need to turn ourselves in,”
I’d be lying if I didn’t say that I felt horrible for all I just told Frank. It was necessary, though. I had to say it all. Frank stood there, staring down at the ground with his eyes brimming with tears and his mouth agape. I put my hand on Frank’s shoulder.
“Come on, Frankie. Let’s go,” I said. Frank didn’t reply. “Frank, come on--”
“No!” Frank hissed. He turned to me, his eyes full of resentment. “You were supposed to help me! You were supposed to help me find daddy!”
“Frank, he’s dead!” I said defensively, exasperated. “We have got to turn ourselves in. This was a mistake!”
“You lied to me!” Frank screamed, giving me a hard push that nearly sending me to the floor. “You were supposed to help me!”
I knew what was happening now. Frank was furious. I have betrayed him. Whatever kind of bond we had was now gone. I should have known how hard it was going to be to tell the truth to Frank. I knew it would upset him, but I should have known that it would hurt this much to see him like this. He fucking hates me.
“You son of a bitch! I’m gonna kill you!” Frank screamed, swinging his fists at me. My body went into panic mode, backing away and covering myself from Frank’s fists. His face was full of a rage he could not contain. It hurt so much to see it.
“Frank, stop!” I yelled, defending myself. Frank hit me right in the gut, sending me to the floor. He began to kick my helpless body, hitting my head over and over again. I tried in vain to back away from Frank, only to have him hit me some more. He grabbed a handful of my hair and punched me right in the face over and over again. It wasn’t long before I felt light-headed, my vision blurring. I could feel blood running from my nose and my face throb. I’m pretty sure I have a concussion, knowing how much Frank hit me in the head. I guess this is how it felt to be beat up by someone you love. It hurt like a son of a bitch. The worst part was that I couldn’t fight back; not because I was too weak, but I refused to hurt someone that meant so much to me. I felt myself slip further and further into unconsciousness, my whole world around me going gray as Frank hit me again and again. I suddenly heard people approach us, their feet stomping on the ground I laid on.
“Hands up! Get down on the ground!” one of the people yelled. I felt him take Frank off me. Frank screamed and cussed at whoever was trying to pursue him. I think I know who these people were, telling Frank to stop resisting. It was the police. They had found us.
“Can you hear me?” one of them asked me, crouching over my weak body. I could barely see him. He was a blur. “If you can hear me, tell me how many fingers I’m holding up,” he said, holding up his arm. I couldn’t make out how many fingers he was holding up. My best guess was three.
“Three,” I said shakily. The officer didn’t respond. He spoke something I couldn’t make out into a walkie talkie.
“Stay here,” he said to me.
“Frankie…,” I called out, my damaged body longing for Frank’s presence. I wish he wasn’t mad at me. I wish he didn’t hate me for telling him the truth. I needed him with me. I loved him. I could still hear him screaming as the officers tried to contain him. I felt my eyes grow heavy, my mind slipping into a darkness I could not escape.

_ _ _
I opened my eyes, only to have them blinded by a strong light above me. I felt my face throb with a numbing pain. I also quickly noticed that I couldn’t move my arms. It feels like they’re held down. When my vision adjusted, my eyes widened in horror--I am handcuffed to a hospital bed. I am in a fucking hospital! I remember everything leading up to this moment. I remember telling Frank that he’s sick when we were in the park. I remember telling him he’s suffering from delusions and hallucinations. I remember him beating me up to a bloody pulp. I need to find him. I need to tell him I’m sorry. I need to tell him that I regret doing what I did, because it’s true. It broke my heart to see Frank the way he was. I need to tell him that I love him. I need to protect him...
I looked over and noticed that Dr. Haycraft was sitting in a plastic chair near my bed. Outside the sliding door there was a tall, built man standing in front of the door. He turned around and opened up the door, whispering something to Dr. Haycraft. He nodded, briefly looking over to me and going back to standing in front of the door.
“Where’s Frank?” I asked Dr. Haycraft, demanding answers. She didn’t look like she was willing to cooperate with me, her eyes fixed on her smartphone.
“Don’t worry about him, Gerard,” she said, sounding unpleased.
“No, tell me! I need to see him!” I said, raising my voice. “Please let me see him!”
“I’m afraid I can’t do that,”
“Why?!”
“Because you’re being transferred. Besides, do you think I’d let you free, knowing what you’ve done?” Dr. Haycraft asked, making eye contact with me.
What?! Are you fucking kidding me? Transferred? To where?
“Where?!” I barked.
“White Oaks. They’ll keep you safe there so you won’t escape again,” Dr. Haycraft said, looking back at her phone, her fingers typing away at the screen.
“No! I can’t be transferred!” I hollered, struggling in vain with my restrained arms. “I need to be with Frank! Someone needs to be there to protect him!”
“The staff at the place Frank is going to can do that. Your help is not needed,”
“Yes it is! I need to keep him safe from people like Bob and Jimmy! You gotta let me see him--”
“No, Gerard,” Dr. Haycraft said, cutting me off. “It’s not your job to protect someone else. You need to focus on yourself. You can’t focus on helping someone else. Frank needs serious help. You gotta let him go, Gerard. Please,”
“But...I...I…,” I stuttered, at a loss of words. What was I supposed to say? What if, as much as I hated to admit it, she was right…?
No. She’s wrong. It’s my duty to protect Frank. I told myself I would keep him safe. I need her to get me out of this damn hospital bed and let me see Frank, wherever he may be. Before I could beg Dr. Haycraft to undo me from the handcuffs, two EMTs came in with a stretcher.
“Is this him?” one of them asked Dr. Haycraft. She nodded her head and stood up.
“Gerard, I bid you farewell. Please, heed my words and get help. It’s for your own good,”
“You’re not taking me anywhere,” I said, ignoring Dr. Haycraft. She walked out of the room, leaving me with the EMTs.
“Gerard, you gotta cooperate with us. We’re here to take you to White Oaks,” one of them spoke. I shook my head violently.
“No, you’re not. I want to see Frank,”
“I’m afraid we can’t let you do that. You need to come with us,” the other EMT said, looking like his patience with me was dwindling away. Maybe I truly was screwed. What if Frank isn’t even in the hospital? What if he already was taken somewhere else, like another institution? Maybe I was never gonna be able to see him again. Maybe he’s gone. I’ll never be able to apologize to him. I’ll never be able to tell him I love him. I looked down, tears starting to leak from my eyes. I tried holding them back, but it was no use.
“Fine,” I said flatly, letting the EMTs undo me from the bed and transfer me to the stretcher. As I got onto it, I broke down, my crying turning to uncontrollable sobs. I let the EMTs strap me down to the stretcher and wheel me out of the room, taking me to the ambulance outside. I so badly wanna disappear. Frank is gone forever.
I’m sorry, Frank. I love you.

Notes