+Bad Catholics+ Frank Iero

+5+

"Where are you going?"

I turned around to look at Frank, the sun now fully illuminating the sky. His body was turned facing a direction opposite of where I began to walk once we made it back down the hill and down the street, a strangely innocent look of confusion on his face.

"Home, where else would I be going?"

"You know what lists are, right? Like a bunch of sentences, over and over again? Not just one sentence?"

I frowned at him, the wind raising the hair on my arms underneath my sweater sleeves.

"I know what a list is."

"So that means you know we've only crossed off one thing."

I sighed as I realized my plot to satisfy Frank enough to leave me alone failed.

"What else could you possibly want me to do, Frank?"

Frank smiled at me and crossed his arms, the sunlight behind him casting his large shadow over top my legs, making me even colder.

"Give me one better thing you have to do today, on this beautiful Saturday morning."

"Homework."

"Mae, the entire school knows you rush home on Fridays like a total dork to finish your homework. You don't have any homework."

I began to stutter as I looked down at my feet, desperate to come up with a better excuse. He was right, I didn't have any homework left. Worse yet, I didn't have any studying left either. It wasn't until Frank was suddenly standing right in front me that I realized I had been stalling for far too long.

I looked up at him, my breath shortening at the thought of being physically close to another human being, regardless of Frank's friendly expression. The thought of spending time with him scared me terribly- I had heard countless stories about the kind of trouble he has gotten into over the years, and the things he has done. I didn't trust him further than I could throw him. The seemingly soft encounter on the hill wasn't enough to sway me, not that anything else in the world could.

Those few seconds standing in front of him was enough time for the thoughts to begin rushing in- mostly questioning his motives for likely the hundredth time. Paranoia set in as quickly as the sun rose.

Does he know something about me? If I stop agreeing to this will he tell everyone? Am I being blackmailed? Oh god Mae what have you gotten yourself into-

"Earth to Mae, hello?"

Frank's hand waving in my face startled me out of my trance, my eyes darting back up to him.

"God, you're so spacey. Are you coming? If you don't i'm just going to throw more rocks at your window," Frank laughed.

I remained stoic, wondering if the worry I was feeling could be read on my face. Peering over my shoulder at my house in the distance, I suppressed a sigh and looked back at him.

"One more thing. That's it."

"I'll take it! Come on, follow me."

.

I stepped over small, decrepit gravestones as I followed Frank into the Belleville Cemetery, no shortage of discomfort bubbling up in my chest. I kept my distance behind him as he casually walked through, his arms swaying back and forth in front of him.

It was the last place I had expected for him to take me, and the last place I really wanted to be. I didn't like the feeling that someone else was that close to the past I hid as he walked right past the grave my father was buried in- My face contorted as I saw his name embossed on the stone in the corner of my eye.