So Long, Not Goodnight

Chapter Thirty-Three

They gathered everything that they needed for the event; candles, matches, and her rosary. The sun was still above the horizon, waning and turning darker, but still peeking out from the trees and shrubbery. "From the minimal knowledge I know," Frank peered outside, pushing back the thick tapestry of the living room curtain. "Is that it's best to do at night, preferably by the light of the moon."

"So we wait?" Gerard appeared behind him, following his gaze.

"We wait." Frank nodded, replacing the curtain. 

Frank stared out at the yard beyond the porch and noticed that Gerard had been gone longer than he expected him to be. He uncrossed his arms and walked back through the hall towards the foyer, glimpsing through the archway of the dining room and stopping at it's mouth. The plastic had been torn away and the lid of the box removed and Gerard had the board open on the dining room table, his fingers brushing over the arched letters back and forth. "Getting acclimated?" Frank smirked, loitering against the doorframe. 

Gerard's fingers jumped from the board, startled by Frank's presence. "I guess so," Gerard continued swirling his fingertips over it's glossy surface. 

The look on Gerard's face reminded Frank of a grade school kid about to perform in their class play, a sort of stage fright. "Performance anxiety?" Frank tried to lighten the mood a bit.

"In a way," Gerard continued in another trance. 

"C'mon, babe," Frank walked around the table to Gerard's side, gently overlaying his hand and stopping his twitching fingers. "Why don't we have some coffee?"

"Coffee does sound good," Gerard took Frank's hand and let himself be led out of the room and into the kitchen. 

He busied himself with preparing the machine as Frank collected the other odds and ends, remembering from earlier where they were. He got everything set up on the table just as the coffee finished dribbling into the pot. Leaning upwards to the cabinet to the right of the sink, Frank took down two mugs. One was Pepto Bismol pink with cartoon flowers all over the sides and the other was a Dilbert cartoon with death summoning the character to two sets of doors - one that read "Damned if you do" and the other saying "Damned if you don't". Frank laughed to himself as he set them both down beside Gerard to fill. "This isn't something that I'd expect in a good Christian household," Frank grinned, his lip ring clicking against his teeth. "Swearing?"

"God forbid," Gerard leaned his head against his shoulder, rolling his eyes at Frank. "My dad loves that kinda shit, even if he is a," Gerard took a deep breath, his eyes still rolling around. "God-fearing Christian."

Gerard filled both mugs up and replaced the carafe into it's spot beneath the plastic filter of the machine. Frank took both cups and placed the flowery one in front of Gerard as he sat. Stirring cream and sugar into his coffee, Frank flirtatiously smiled up at Gerard as his fingers twisted the handle of the spoon round and round. "Why are you looking at me like that?" Gerard leaned into his elbows on the tabletop, both hands gripping the ceramic of the mug and pulling in a deep sip.

"Just noticing how pink is your color," Frank continued stirring as Gerard almost choked on his drink. "It brings out the blush of your cheeks."

Frank could barely see where the mug began and Gerard's face ended, the hue was strikingly similar. "I absolutely love seeing you blush," Frank giggled, biting his lip. "Especially when I'm the one that causes it." 

"Fuck, Frankie," Gerard's grin baring his small teeth. "You're making me choke on my fucking coffee."

"That's not the only thing I can get you to choke on," Frank stuck his tongue out and winked at his lover.