A Bullet Through A Flock Of Doves

Nine - I See You Lying Next To Me

Frank woke up the next day to find Gerard curled around his back, soft breaths against his neck.

He shivered and scooted away in the small bunk, only for Gerard to make an unhappy mumbling noise in his sleep and pull Frank back up against his chest so that, once again, they lay like spoons, curved against one another.

Frank turned his head back to look at Gerard's peaceful face. People looked so innocent in sleep, he thought, though he knew that appearances could be very deceiving.

He briefly fantasized about ending it all right there- choking Gerard, maybe just cutting off his air, somehow overpowering him and beating him until he was no more. But that wasn't how Frank did it, and he knew it. If he were to kill Gerard, it wouldn't be by force, not really. It would be by tricks, illusions of trust, the element of cleverness he had which had worked many times over in the past.

But for now, he was content with the knowledge that in under a month, Gerard would be unquestionably dead, electrocuted, then probably cremated until nothing remained of him but ash in a small metal box. He'd had hope that Gerard might be different from all of his other inmates, but he was just the same. It didn't matter, though- he'd end up like all of them had in the end.

Gerard stirred then, and blinked at Frank in mild confusion before his vision sharpened and he bared his teeth at him in what could have been a smile. Frank couldn't have been sure, because the next thing that happened was that Gerard kissed him, and it was all he could do not to whimper, or possibly punch Gerard, neither of which would likely end well.

So instead he just settled for an angry grunt, squirming backwards a little. That didn't exactly work out for him, though- Gerard just kept closing in on him until his back was pressed against the cold wall and Gerard was easily in control of him. He growled and Gerard bit his lower lip, but not as hard as he had the first time they'd kissed.

He pulled away with a small slurp and a satisfied smile. "Good morning," Gerard murmured, peering down at him from glittering eyes. "How's your throat?" he asked with feigned innocence.

Frank glared at him. "Fine, fuck you."

Gerard raised an eyebrow. "'Fraid not. You don't fuck me, it's the other way around."

Frank's brow lowered. "You finally decided to accept that invitation?"

Gerard appraised him before shrugging. "Maybe. If it's needed."

Frank wasn't sure he wanted to know what that meant.

Gerard yawned and got up, wandering over to the shower. He was stopped, however, by the sound of the doors in death row opening. Frank warily sat up in bed, remembering a very specific time that those same doors had opened and he'd almost been impaled with a crowbar.

But it was just the prison guards, coming to take the 'second inmates' out for their exercise. That meant two things- today was Gerard's day to exercise, and that somehow, the two of them had slept through the wake-up sirens.

Frank watched as Gerard was taken away, his eyes gravitating to the exposed triangle of skin on the other's back: he hadn't zipped up the zipper of his prison shirt all the way to the top.

Frank shook himself. He needed to focus here, needed to sort things out. He needed to find out what Gerard was planning and why Gerard was so sure he wouldn't die.

He frowned and kicked the sheets away, before swinging his legs over so that his feet rested on the chill floor. What would give some secrets away? What could he do to find out what made Gerard Way, well, Gerard Way? And, most importantly- how could he find out why Gerard was here in the first place?