I lost my fear of falling || frerard fanfic

Chapter 3: Mikey

Mikey knew something was wrong the moment he saw Frank bolt down the hall after the last bell. It wasn't like Frank to run unless he had to, and given the way he'd been acting around Gerard lately, Mikey was pretty sure he knew why. The tension between them had been growing, thick enough to cut with a knife. And Gerard... Gerard wasn't exactly subtle when he had a problem with someone.

Mikey sighed, watching from his locker as Frank disappeared out the school doors. He hadn't seen exactly what happened earlier, but he could guess. Gerard had that look on his face—like he was hiding something behind his usual cocky smile. It wasn't the first time Gerard had gotten into a fight, but the way he was acting around Frank lately made Mikey uneasy. There was something different about it, something personal.

"Gerard, what the hell are you doing?" Mikey muttered under his breath as he grabbed his backpack and slammed his locker shut. He had half a mind to confront his brother, but he wasn't sure what that would even accomplish. Gerard was stubborn, and whenever Mikey tried to talk to him, he just brushed it off with a joke or a change of subject.

Mikey hurried outside, scanning the crowd of students spilling into the parking lot. Finally, he spotted Frank walking down the street, head down and hands shoved into his pockets. Mikey jogged to catch up, calling out to him.

"Frank! Wait up!"

Frank slowed down but didn't turn around right away. When Mikey finally reached him, the tightness in his friend's face was obvious. Mikey had seen that look before—it was the same one Frank got whenever something was bothering him but he didn't want to talk about it.

"Hey," Frank said, his voice strained.

"You alright?" Mikey asked, though he already knew the answer.

Frank shrugged, keeping his eyes fixed on the pavement. "Yeah. Same old shit, different day."

Mikey bit his lip, resisting the urge to dig deeper. He knew Frank wasn't the type to open up unless he had no choice. But still, Mikey hated seeing him like this—tired, worn down by whatever Gerard had done this time.

"Gerard... He didn't do anything else, did he?" Mikey asked cautiously.

Frank shook his head, but his silence spoke volumes. Mikey wasn't blind—he could see how much Frank was trying to hold it together, trying to act like it didn't matter. But Mikey knew better. Gerard had been acting weird for months, especially around Frank.

"He's been... worse since Dad died, but this? I don't know," Mikey muttered, mostly to himself.

Frank didn't respond right away, just kept walking, his face unreadable. Mikey couldn't help but feel guilty, like Gerard's actions were somehow his responsibility. He loved his brother, but Gerard wasn't making it easy to defend him. And the fact that Gerard seemed to have singled out Frank—Mikey's best friend—only made things more complicated.

There was more to it, Mikey was sure of it. He'd caught the way Gerard looked at Frank sometimes, not with the usual disdain he showed toward people he didn't like, but with something else. Something that Mikey couldn't quite put into words.

And then there were the rumors. Mikey didn't like gossip, but it was hard to ignore what people were saying—that Gerard was gay. Mikey didn't care about that part. He'd support his brother no matter what. But if Gerard had feelings for Frank... and this was how he was dealing with them? It didn't make any sense.

Mikey kicked a stray rock down the sidewalk, frustration bubbling up inside him. Why couldn't Gerard just talk to him? Why did he have to make everything into some kind of game, some power struggle? It wasn't fair to Frank, and it wasn't fair to Mikey either.

"Don't worry about it, man," Frank said suddenly, breaking the silence. "I can handle it. I've dealt with worse."

Mikey frowned, but he didn't argue. He knew Frank was tough, tougher than most people gave him credit for. But still, this wasn't just some random bully they were dealing with—this was Gerard. And if what Mikey suspected was true, things were about to get a lot messier.

"Just... let me know if it gets bad, okay?" Mikey said quietly. "Gerard's not all bad. He's just... messed up right now."

Frank didn't say anything at first, but Mikey could see the tension in his jaw, the way his hands clenched into fists at his sides. "Yeah. I will," Frank finally said, but Mikey wasn't convinced.

They walked in silence after that, both lost in their own thoughts. Mikey couldn't stop thinking about Gerard—about the way his brother had been acting lately, the late nights, the drinking, the sudden mood swings. Mikey had tried to talk to him, to understand what was going on, but Gerard always shut him down. And now, with Frank caught in the middle, Mikey felt more helpless than ever.

By the time they reached Frank's house, Mikey was exhausted—emotionally more than anything. He stopped at the edge of the driveway, unsure of what else to say.

"See you tomorrow?" Frank asked, looking at Mikey with that same guarded expression.

Mikey managed a small smile. "Yeah. And Frank... thanks."

"For what?" Frank raised an eyebrow.

"For... putting up with Gerard."

Frank laughed softly, shaking his head. "I'm not doing it for him."

Mikey nodded, understanding what Frank meant. He waved as Frank headed inside, then turned and started walking toward home. As he walked, Mikey's mind kept circling back to Gerard.

Gerard was messed up, sure. But Mikey couldn't shake the feeling that there was something deeper going on. Something between Gerard and Frank that neither of them wanted to admit.

And if Mikey was right... well, things were about to get a whole lot more complicated.

𝐈'𝐦 𝐨𝐧 𝐚 𝐫𝐨𝐥𝐥 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬, 𝐈 𝐠𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐨𝐦 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤 𝐰𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐝, 𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐚 𝐝𝐢𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐧 𝐌𝐢𝐤𝐞𝐲'𝐬 𝐩𝐨𝐯 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐈 𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐤𝐞𝐲 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐢𝐭. 𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐬𝐨𝐨𝐧  -𝐃𝐲𝐥𝐚𝐧 <3