Poison (Frerard)

Welcome To The Family

"I can't do this. I changed my mind... I'll call Ma later and explain it to her but I just can't face him again," Frank rambled, completely turning the car around.

"Hey, Frankie, it's okay. You' won't be doing this alone; I'll be with you the whole time--I'll even hold your hand if you want," Gerard reassured, gently putting his hand on Frank's arm in a comforting gesture. "Come on, turn the car around."

"Gee, I can't... My dad, he--I just can't do it, not now," Frank said quickly, his voice a little bit breathless due to anxiety.

"Pull the car over then," Gerard directed, a confused wrinkle forming in Frank's brow as he did as he'd asked.

"Gee, what're you doing?" Frank sighed, becoming even more confused when Gerard unbuckled his seatbelt.

"You are strong, Frankie. You helped me get through an addiction to fucking cocaine; I know you can face your father," Gerard said encouragingly, pressing a passionate kiss to his lips.

"Gee--You haven't met him yet, you don't know what he's like..." Frank rambled, still nervous, but now a little distracted by the position Gerard was in, practically straddling his right leg and his very kissable lips only a few millimeters away.

"I'm sure I can handle him... And he's your father, Frank, you spent most of your life living in the same house as him--I'm sure you can handle one more afternoon," Gerard replied confidently, kissing Frank again before sliding off his lap and back into the passenger seat. He buckled the seatbelt, turning towards Frank expectantly. "Come on, I'm sure your mom is impatient to see you again."

"Alright. But I'm only doing this because I love you," Frank sighed, waiting for an approaching car to pass before pulling back out onto the road.

"I love you, too," Gerard said with a smile, playfully poking Frank's cheek before folding his hands in his lap. His thumbs twiddled nervously, the first wave of anxiety at meeting the man who'd made that last few of Frank's teenage years hell hitting him.

Frank Sr. had mellowed out a little in the past few years, but the prospect of a homophobic outburst making both men extremely nervous.

------

Frank bounced his leg as they stood on the porch, already having tried the doorbell and receiving no response.

"Maybe it's broken?" Gerard suggested, pulling open the screen door. The metal hinges screeched with the effort, the pale redhead reaching forward and firmly knocking on the wooden door.

"Hi, Ma," Frank greeted as his mother peeked her head around the door, a soft smile curving his mouth.

"Frankie, dear, it's so nice to see you!" Linda cheerily said once she'd fully opened the door, enveloping her son in a tight hug. "And, Gerard, it's lovely to see you, too! Come in, come in!"

"Thanks for letting us come over and do this today, Mrs. Iero," Gerard said a little awkwardly, Linda chuckling at him.

"Call me Mom," she happily replied, surprising Gerard with a hug, as well. "Or Linda, if you're still not comfortable with that yet."

"Okay, Linda," Gerard said more comfortably, a smile on his lips.

"Where's Dad?" Frank asked quietly, nervously picking at his fingernails. His eyes flicked over the Gerard's nails, just now realizing that the dark purple polish on them probably wasn't the best look for when he was going to be introduced to his father.

"In the kitchen. I hope you're hungry, I made two dishes of lasagna this time," Linda replied, a little nervousness of her own creeping up on her. She loved her husband, she really did, but she knew he was unreasonable sometimes. She didn't care who her son loved as long as he was happy and she'd taken quite a liking to Gerard's cheerful personality and delicate features--she joked to herself, "if he's going to fall in love with a boy, at least he's pretty."