Author's Note:
Yes, yes, I know. This chapter is short as hell.
I'm trying.
I'll give you cookies if you don't complain :P
Frank's POV
Science went by in a quick blur; the only thing I was paying attention to was Gerard, who was, honestly, the only thing I was looking at.
Well, besides the giant spider in the hands of the kid sitting directly beside me.
I'm not kidding. Dead frogs and stuffed cats filled the room, as well as a few live mice and a couple of snakes. Our teacher also had pet roaches and spiders in glass cages, which creeped me out. I'm sure Gerard thought the classroom was cool, but it left me feeling uneasy and paranoid all period.
Needless to say, he was the first one laughing when I was the first one out of that classroom when the bell rang.
"Well, at least you weren't on top of the table screaming when the kid beside you wanted to hold the tarantula," he laughed, trying to hold back tears. I hit him on the arm and rolled my eyes.
"Well, at least I can take a needle," I retorted lightly, holding up my decorated knuckles. Gerard's eyes widened, and he looked like he was about to get hit by a truck.
"Needles are different than spiders," he said, blushing. "At least spiders can't poke a hole in your skin and inject stuff that can potentially kill you." A pause, then, "Oh, wait, never mind."
"Ha! See?" I grinned, showing my triumph.
"Not all of them, though. But being afraid of needles is logical. Arachnophobia isn't."
"Whatever, Gerard. You know I'm the winner of this argument."
He laughed softly to himself as we walked down the hall to go home. I was glad science was our last class of the day; it would be easy to find each other and walk home afterwards.
We walked through the school doors and were met by a gust of crisp, early-autumn air. It felt nice; I've never really felt the breezy beginning of autumn on my skin because I was always hiding it from the world. The long sleeves and jackets covered up the bruises and cuts from myself and my parents on my arms, preventing me from feeling the start of autumn. Not anymore; my healed bare arms felt both the cool wind and the warm hand wrapped around me as we walked.
"Oh, Frankie?" Gerard asked, breaking the silence. "Did I tell you Ray finished writing his guitar part into 'Early Sunsets Over Monroeville'? He's going to come by tomorrow or the next day and play it for us."
"Really? That's great! That was fast," I said, awed. "Toro doesn't waste any time." Gerard nodded, grinning proudly.
"I can't believe you two sound so good together," he commented. "It's like you guys were meant to play guitar in the same band. It's weird; your styles are both so different."
"That might be why it sounds so good," I laughed, turning onto Gerard's street. It was true, and I had been surprised that Toro's and my guitar styles harmonized so well with each other. We had, as a three-person group, written eleven songs, including an instrumental song that Toro and I came up with one day while Gerard was in detention. We just called it "Romance," since it had no words anyway.
"Hi, boys," Elena called to us as she headed out the door. We met her on the porch on her way out. "Bridge club. You know the drill: do your homework, try not to do anything illegal, and Gerard, please don't break anything."
"I won't, Grandma," Gerard smiled, rolling his eyes playfully.
"Watch him, Frankie," she retorted, taking a few steps to her car and winking at me. "I'll be back in an hour or so."
"I love her," I said, grinning after her car had left.
"How can you not?" Gerard asked, going into the house. When we had gotten inside and settled, Gerard gave me that smirk. The maddening one that I never could resist. The one that reminded me of the boy that I saw today.
"Frankie?"
"What?" I asked, shaking the boy out of my head. Why was he bothering me so much? I'm probably overreacting.
"Can you play me your part of 'Early Sunsets Over Monroeville' again?"
"Again?"
Gerard grinned. "Please?"
I gave in to his toothy smile. "Let me go get Pansy," I said, pretending to sound burdened by that feat.