october challenge | frerard | ✔️

nineteen - stitches

nineteen: it's a long story

"Hey, baby," Gerard said, and rolled over onto his stomach, closing his comic and putting it on his bedside table. 

Frank put bookmarked his book and put it aside too, turning his head so as to not make an effort to flip onto his stomach as well. "Yeah?"

Gerard's hand trailed down Frank's bare shoulder and his fingers curled with Frank's. "When did you get those stitches? The ones under your 'hope' tat?"

Frank's free hand instinctively went up to touch his chest, and when he affirmed to himself that the little bump on his chest was still there, he let his hand rest on his stomach. "Um, well," he began, and then his throat closed up. "It's a long story."

Gerard let go of Frank's hand in order to slip it around his waist, and Frank watched the muscles and ligaments in Gerard's chest and arm flex and contract as he completed the simple movement. He felt his own body moving closer to Gerard's and then he almost smiled at the tiny bit more comfort that this position held. He flipped onto his side as well and mirrored Gerard's new position. 

"We've got all day. Literally," Gerard gently nudged, and Frank felt his heart clench, so he leant forward a little, and pressed his lips to Gerard's. Gerard responded as soon as Frank kissed him, kissing back softly and pulling him in for another one when they parted. "You good?"

"Yeah," Frank said, and Gerard smiled at the way his cheeks and ears went red. "I just wanted to kiss you."

"Alright. You can kiss me again," Gerard smirked, but Frank smiled too and flipped on top of him and kissed him. This time, it wasn't soft and innocent like it was before, but it wasn't anywhere in the vicinity of lustful and erotic. It was desperate, loving, kind. If his lips were available, Gerard would have smiled. 

Frank finally pulled away after around two minutes of kissing Gerard, and flipped back onto his side, then sat up. Gerard sat up with him, and Frank's hand seemed to go unconsciously to hold Gerard's, which made the latter smile. 

"What's up, Frankie?"

Frank sighed. "I'm making such a big deal out of this," he whispered. "You know about my past... my merc stuff, yeah?"

Gerard's eyes went wide for a few moments before he nodded, making a conscious effort to keep his mouth closed. Frank hated talking about his past, even though Gerard had been a part of his life while he was taking expensive jobs on the side. Frank was good at it too. He'd always been good at it. Killing people seemed to be something he had talent in. He'd make it easy on them, make them as comfortable as possible and gain their trust before brutally betraying it. 

As one can assume, it'd taken months for Frank to trust Gerard enough to tell him his feelings and take up his offer on being boyfriends. It'd been years since, and Gerard hadn't ever done anything to compromise his trust, but that was only because he wasn't a killer, and he was a good boyfriend. A great one, Frank would argue. And Frank truly loved Gerard. 

But he also truly loved living a crime-free life, and when he complained to Gerard about his desperate longing to be a normal person, or relatively normal, at best, Gerard had urged him to pursue what he actually wanted to do in life rather than what he was currently doing. Frank, trusting Gerard deeply had done so, and lo and behold, years later he was a relatively happier man with a much stronger sense of fulfilment and a relatively happier boyfriend with a much stronger sense of love and adoration for Frank. 

 "Yeah," Gerard whispered, and one of his hands absentmindedly traced Frank's tattoos on his shoulder. Gerard didn't know it, but when he traced Frank's tattoos lightly like he was doing now, it made Frank's whole body seem to relax. So Frank took a few more seconds, basking in the lovely feeling of Gerard's finger tracing his shoulder before he spoke again.