'Til Death Do Us Apart

*

New Year's Eve.

The last hours before 2008.

Classic story. Boy meets boy at a party. They're both pretty drunk. Pale, shy one is standing by the corner, clearly not wanting to be there. Short, tattooed one is drinking with his friends nearby, but can't keep his eyes off him.

Short guy runs into him in the kitchen while getting more beer, and almost falls on his face from being so drunk, but Pale Guy puts out his arm unconsciously, preventing the fall. Short guy stands on his feet, and turns to the other guy.  'You saved my life,' he mumbles.

To which Pale Guy just laughs nervously.

'Can I call you my guardian angel? Or you have a name?'

'I'm Gerard.'

'Frank.'

They end up talking for the longest time, sitting on the kitchen counter. Short Guy laughs at everything Pale Guy says and they both keep drinking. And as they do, they get closer and closer, and one thing leads to the next, and then they're making out.

They welcome the new year with their tongues exploring each other's mouths, and their hands on each other's bodies.

They keep seeing each other, running into each other at shows and friends' parties. Talking for hours, ignoring the rest of the world. And always leaving together, somewhere they can be alone. 'This isn't just hooking up anymore, right?' Frank says one morning, while Gerard is making breakfast for them.

Gerard just looks at him with a smile, his cheeks going redder by the second. 'What do you mean?'

'I mean, I like you. Like you, like you. I know you like me. Why don't we just cut the crap and call it like it is.'

Gerard doesn't say anything, and just looks at him.

'Go out with me.'

So Gerard does, and that leads to many dates, many nights were Frank just crashes at his place every other day, until Gerard's apartment is full of his crap, and his cat starts to like him. At some point, he just moves in. Meeting the parents, going on trips together, adopting a dog together just to make Frank happy, Frank leaving on tour with another band. And then one day, Gerard just pops out the question in the middle of a Bright Eyes concert.

They get married a year later in New York, with only family and a few friends there.

It was a fairy tale of sorts.

Boy meets boy. They fall in love. They get married. They're happy together, and start thinking about a family.

But not all fairy tales have a happy ending.

And only three years after getting married, it all ended.

***

Marriage is the foundation of love and the –

Gerard reads back what he wrote, not sure if it sounds convincing, before continuing. He hates it. This isn't working. There's no way he can say those words without laughing.

Why did Shaun ask a divorced man to give a speech at a wedding?! What is he supposed to say? Don't get married? It's a trap?

He thought about telling him he couldn't go to the wedding, but he couldn't do it. He's already the worst of friends for ignoring his calls, and for not visiting in the last couple years.