Echoes of Eclipsed Fears (Frerard)

19. Tell Me You'll Be My Rhythm Playing Hand in Hand

Frank rubbed his eyes blearily, slipping out of bed and onto the plush carpet. He blinked sleep from his eyes, staggering into the bathroom to do his business. Frank gazed at his reflection, splashing some water on his face to wake up his eyes. No new wrinkles, he thought to himself.

He didn't feel twenty-three, though he was sure it'd hit him later in the day. Frank jumped in the shower, making it a quick one just to wake himself up, and ran a toothbrush over his teeth before making his way downstairs.

Gerard heard Frank stirring as soon as he woke up. The vampire grinned; he had been racing around all night, preparing for Frank's birthday. He'd already bought the presents - one of them he'd snuck inside a few days ago, the other still in his car to hide from Frank's prying eyes. He didn't have much assembling to do, so he left it all till the night before Frank's special day. He heard Frank descending the stairs and raced to greet him.

"Happy birthday, Frank!" He beamed, pulling the boy in for a big hug. Frank smiled, burying his face in Gerard's shirt. Less than three weeks ago, he had been dreading the day, expecting to spend it alone, confined to the boundaries of his captor's home. Gerard was grateful that Frank had come around.

"Breakfast first, or presents?" Gerard asked. Frank looked up at him, his puppy dog eyes glistening with guilt.

"Gerard," he whinged. "You shouldn't have got me anything."

"Pfft," Gerard scoffed. He dragged Frank by the hand to the library.

Frank nervously followed Gerard, letting the vampire place his hands over his eyes before the final reveal.

"I promise I didn't get you anything fancy," Gerard said. "I just... improved some things you already owned."

"Improved?" Frank asked, raising his eyebrows. Gerard removed his hands with a flourish and Frank looked around the room. His eyes settled on Pansy, who was resting in a brand new guitar stand.

"Aww," Frank grinned. "Thanks Gee! I was starting to worry about leaving it on the couch all the time; knowing my luck I'd sit on it and break it." He wandered over to the stand, admiring the sleek black metal. "This is really handy, thank you."

"Not a problem at all, Frankie," Gerard said with a smile. He gently picked up something small off the table, holding it behind his back. "I was going to wrap this, but I didn't see the point," he explained. "It's technically already yours, after all."

"What-" Frank said, his voice breaking off when Gerard pressed something flat and rectangular into his hands. He glanced down at the photo frame; Gerard had bought him a frame for the photo of him and Ray at graduation. "Gerard," he breathed. Tears pricked his eyes. This was his favourite photo ever, and now he could display it properly in his bedroom. He wrapped his arms around Gerard's waist. "Thank you," he said in a lower voice than usual.

"You're welcome," Gerard said, planting a kiss on the top of Frank's head. Frank brushed a tear out of his eye, looking up to face Gerard. He stood on his tiptoes to kiss the vampire. Gerard smiled into Frank's lips, resting his hand on the back of Frank's neck.

"Let me make you some breakfast," Gerard said when he pulled away from Frank. "Go sit down, I'll be back soon."

Frank nodded, drifting over to the couch. He sat down, admiring the photo of him and Ray, which was now resting in a simple - yet gorgeous, black-and-white frame. He smiled at the picture, brushing over the frame with his index finger.

"I miss you so much, Ray," he sniffled. "Wish you were here. Love you."

Frank set the photo down on the coffee table and picked up his book, not wanting to cry anymore. He only had a few more pages to go.