Poison (Frerard)

Withdrawals

Gerard lay on his back with his head in Frank's lap, tattooed fingers running through and curling in his fiery hair. He sighed contentedly, closing his eyes as he nuzzled closer to Frank's warm body. Frank giggled and gazed down at him, a tender smile on his face. Gerard smiled back, the happy expression crinkling the corners of his eyes.

"Do you think animals have feelings and thoughts like humans do?" he said thoughtfully, giggling at himself when he realized how silly of a question it was.

"Yeah, I do," Frank replied, chuckling softly. "They don't all react the same, so it can't just be instinct. And pets couldn't develop such close bonds with their owners if they didn't have some sort of feelings."

"I've always wanted a cat..." Gerard mumbled, absentmindedly fiddling with the buttons on his shirt.

"Why don't you get one?" Frank asked, Gerard chuckling dryly.

"I can't even take care of myself, Frankie..." he muttered, a small, hopeful smile quirking his lips. "Someday, after I get sober, maybe..."

"Maybe I'll get you one," Frank replied, his voice a soft whisper.

Gerard sat up, an arm on either side of Frank's body. He softly pressed his lips to the shorter man's, his eyes fluttering closed. Frank kissed back, gently cupping his jaw with his hand.

Gerard pulled away and buried his face in Frank's shoulder, his voice rasping when he spoke. "Why are you doing this?" he asked, a pained edge to his voice.

"Doing what?" Frank said in confusion, twirling the hair at the nape of Gerard's neck around his fingers.

"Talking to me, staying here with me, fucking cuddling with me..." Gerard replied quietly, shifting away from him.

"I'm your friend, Gee. I promised you I'd be here for you, and I don't go back on promises. I care about you--I really fucking care about you--and I want to do whatever I can to make you happy," Frank said softly, reaching out and covering Gerard's hand with his own.

"I'm sorry, Frankie," Gerard mumbled, moving back close to him. He leaned his head on his shoulder, linking their fingers in between them. "I'm just emotional and off-balance right now... and it's only going to get worse..."

"Just get some sleep," Frank said softly, shifting to a laying down position. Gerard lay his head on his chest, tracing one of the birds tattooed across his hips with his finger. A tattooed arm wrapped around his shoulders, the warm embrace giving Gerard a sense of safety and comfort he wasn't familiar with.

"Frankie...please don't take what I say into consideration. With my thoughts and feelings so out of control, I won't mean what I say and I won't really be able to control what comes out of my mouth. I don't want to hurt you because of some offhand comment I don't even mean," Gerard said pleadingly, his voice sad and broken sounding. He wrapped an arm around Frank's waist, snuggling closer to him.

"Shhh...I won't let it bother me," Frank said softly, soothingly running his fingers through his hair. "Now get some sleep, it's late."

"I've had plenty of late nights before, Frankie," Gerard grumbled lightheartedly, shifting to face him.

"I'd expected you'd respond something like that," Frank giggled, smiling at him. "But I know the next few days are going to be really draining and exhausting for you, so you sort of need your sleep."

"Shut up," Gerard muttered softly, hiding his grin against Frank's shoulder.

Frank reached over and pulled the small chain for the lamp, bathing the room in darkness. Their eyes slowly adjusted, pale moonlight filtering in around the edge of the curtains and making it a little easier to see. "Goodnight, Gee," he whispered, kissing his forehead.