Gerard and Frank Discover the Secrets of the Universe

Today has not been a good day, and it's only lunch. Flunked my math test, lost the twenty dollars that I needed to pay back some jock I bought a record from (Smashing Pumpkins will never die), and some kid pointed out my black eye in front of the whole class. And just when I think it can't get any worse-

"Hey, sweetheart."

Fucking Bert walks up to me and meets my stride, wrapping his arm around my waist. He makes to kiss my cheek, but I stop walking and step away from him before he makes contact. "The fuck do you want?" I ask, going on the offence, "I thought I made it clear that I never want to see you again." He tries to look hurt, but I see the hatred through his feign. "Alright, that's fair. But I've changed, baby! I know what I did wrong and you can leave that short pussy!"

That's when I break. My hand flies across his cheek, leaving a red mark that I'm proud to have made. The cafeteria noise dies down significantly, soon free from all noise. "He's better than you in all ways and you know it." I know that there are people watching and videoing. I know that Frank saw that and how he probably thinks of me. I know that I shouldn't, but I do.

I storm out of the cafeteria, eyes following my every step. I need to get to the lounge. None of the other guys have a lock pick, so I should be alone. I break into a sprint down the senior hall, and I might be imagining quiet footsteps following far behind. Just as I'm reaching the door, I pull out my lockpick and jiggle it around in the lock, throwing the door open and shutting it behind me.

There's gotta be some beer somewhere. My hands riffle through the refrigerator, knocking over some Sprite cans and I gleefully sigh when I see a Bud Lite we smuggled in here. I open the can, letting the drink fizz over before downing it. I grab another can from the fridge and start making my way to the couch, stopping when I hear a knocking on the door.

"Gerard?" Is that Frankie? Could be him or Mikey, or Ray. Shit they all sound the same! "Who is it?" I ask, leaning against the door and popping the top off of the can. "It's... uh... Mikey!" Yeah, that makes sense. "Let me in, I need to talk to you!" No fucking way. There might be people on the other side of the door, ready to embarrass me... I'm not letting him in!

I stomp away from the door, leaning on the wall and taking a sip of my second beer. We might have to sneak some more in; I think this is the last one. I hear a banging on the door, then a different voice. "Gerard, let me in! It's Frank, I lied about Mikey. I'm worried! Why won't you let me in?"

I decide not to answer, draining the rest out of the can. There is some more banging on the door, then I hear scratching, and a thud. What the fuck is he doing? I hear a last, quiet, thud, then silence. Next thing I know, Mikey is storming into the room, Frank following close behind. I crush the can, tossing it at Mikey.

"What? You've never gotten on me for having a drink or two!" I tell him, and Frank gives a Mikey questioning look. Mikey whispers something to him, and then nods his head. "That's not why I'm mad - Hell, I'm not even mad! But I do need to know some things." Yeah, that makes more sense. "I mean... Frank needs to know some things." He nods to Frank, who takes a step forward.

"What the fuck happened? Who was that guy?" I sit down on a chair, covering my face in my hands. "I was hoping I wouldn't have to tell you about him." "Yeah, but ya do." A sigh escapes my lips, and I drag my hands down my cheeks, closing my eyes for a second before opening them once more.

"Bert McCracken is my ex." I say simply, waiting for his reaction. Rather, lack of. His eyes stay glued on mine, his lips pursed and face white. "He... uh... this is going to sound bad, but he was a good boyfriend. He took me on dates, respected my boundaries, and bought me food. But he was just acting. It took me a while to see through his façade, but eventually I did."

I take a long pause, drumming my fingers on my legs. Frank nods his head, a symbol for me to continue.

"One of his friends, Bob, who barely knew me, came to me one day with important news. I thought it would be something about how he liked me, and wanted me to split with Bert. But, instead, he told me that Bert was cheating on me. With proof. I-" I pause again, taking another breath. "I didn't want to believe it. I really didn't wanna. But he had pictures, and I had to believe it then. I broke up with him the next day."

Frank's expression hasn't changed. His face is completely unreadable, even for me. He unfolds his hands and places them on mine, looking from the ground to my eyes. "I just want you to say one thing." He says, waiting a few seconds before continuing. "Tell me that you're over him. If you aren't, say nothing. If you are, we can forget this conversation ever happened and go back to normal. Are you over him?"

He says all of this slowly, his voice low and quiet, but not quite at a whisper. I've hated Bert's guts since that fateful day, but was I truly over him? I think of myself with Bert, at the mall. We're shopping, walking idly at a clothing store. But when I think of Frank, we're eating at the food court. Playfully joking with each other. Smiling, blushing, laughing.

"I can truly say, I'm over him." I tell him, taking his hands in mine. I think Mikey has left now, and the door is closed. What I want to say is risqué, but will play well into the conversation, and perhaps provoke some sexual tension.

So I do.

"But I'm head over heels for you."

His eyes widen, eyes shifting around the room, then settling on our hands. My hand reaches to his chin, lifting it so his head is held high. "Please just let me kiss you." His brow furrows for a second, then completely relaxing and he nods. I lean forward, our lips meeting and shooting electricity down my spine. My lips start moving against his, and my hand rests on the back of his neck. His lips are chapped, feeling rough against mine, but I love it.

He pulls away, too soon, a smile breaking across his face. "You have no idea how long I've wanted to do that." He murmurs, and I quietly giggle. I kiss his cheek and wrap my arm around him, leaning us back. Our hands find each other, clasping together and not letting go.

"I've been meaning to ask you on a date." I tell him, his head resting against mine. "Will you go out with me?" I whisper into his scalp, almost like I'm scared to rupture his eardrums. "How could I say no to that?" He answers, as soft as I spoke moments ago. He reaches down to his boots, pulling a pen out and taking my arm. I give him a questioning look, which he simply answers with, "You never know when you'll need a pen."

He begins to pull up my sleeve, waiting for my approval to go further. "What're you afraid of, sugar?" I ask as he rolls it up further and begins writing on my wrist. "Just a bit of skin." I kiss his scalp, and he puts the cap on the pen. "Just worried that something... else would be there." Frankie is so fucking precious!

A few minutes of cuddling later, he speaks up. "We should probably get to class, I think lunch just ended." I sit up, now hearing the footsteps pounding on the floor outside. "Yeah, I'll text you tonight!" I tell him, walking to the door. "I'm counting on it!"

- - -

New Contact: Frankie
Phone Number: (202) 555-0146
Send message<<br> Me: Hey, Frankie. It's Gee, text me back when you can!

Frankie: hi g. what are your plans?
Me: How about Friday at 6? I could pick you up, then we could go The Hub. I heard a band is playing that night.
Frankie: sure! i just need to tell you a few things before you meet my parents. it's inevitable, you're going to have to meet them or else it'll be hell for me.
Me: Educate me ;)
Frankie: like i said, theyre conservatives. im not out to them yet, so say youre my lab partner or something.
Me: K...
Frankie: and they will ask you where we are going, how long we will be out, and what we will be doing. id say the library, a couple of hours, and studying. i have it all planned out.
me: Can't wait. <3

Notes

two things:
one-the chapter names are lyrics from StarKids 'Back to Hogwarts'
two-the chapters in this story are gonna be really inconsistent lengthwise. some will be five pages, others a single paragraph, some will be normal. single paragraph ones will be fillers, essential to the plotline but won't fit into any other chapters

~cassie