It Was All An Accident (Frerard)

Chapter Nineteen: Brother

Gerard's POV:

For some reason, I can't sleep. I keep tossing and turning under my comforter, either too hot or too cold depending on the positioning of the blankets. Once I kick them off, I'm too cold to sleep, but the second I put them back on the heat starts getting to me. Eventually, I just stick one foot out while the rest of body stays contained and this suffices for a while.

My mind won't shut up so I focus on my breathing and the steady pattern keeps my brain occupied and only worrying about one thing rather than a billion at the time while I force my eyes to stay closed. After what feels like hours, I'm still not asleep and open one eye to peek at the alarm clock I have resting on the nightstand next to my bed. I open both eyes in disbelief when I realize that only ten minutes have passed and it's barely midnight.

Groaning, I kick the covers off once more and sit up. This new sleeplessness is becoming somewhat of a habit now and I'm not liking it one bit. I grab the glass of water on my nightstand and sigh when it's empty. I get out of bed, resigning to the sleepless night I'm sure to have yet again and take the glass out into the hallway towards the kitchen. On my way there, I pass by Frank's room to find the door cracked and a small light shining through the door. I hesitate for a second before knocking twice softly on the door and peek inside.

Frank's sitting in the middle of his bed among many pillows and buried in blankets. His small reading lamp is the light I saw coming from under his door and he's reading a book that I don't remember seeing him with before. Frank must've been expecting me or something because he doesn't even glance towards the door, just continues reading as he says, "Come in, Gerard."

I push the door open a bit more and step inside, setting my empty glass on his nightstand before sitting on the edge of his bed. I go to say something but he just holds up one finger and I automatically close my mouth, resting my head on his shoulder and read to the end of the page with him. I've never read the book he's reading, but it seems pretty interesting from what I've been able to see.

When he's done, he bookmarks his spot and tosses the book lightly to the edge of his bed, scooting over so I have more room. Once I'm situated on his bed with my head back on his shoulder, Frank wraps his arm around my waist and lays his head on mine, "Can't sleep again?"

"No," I mumble tiredly. It comes out as a mumble because my cheek is resting on the hardest part of his shoulder and slightly digging into it, but I don't mind it too much. Frank is comfortable and warm and home. It reminds me of when we were touring with My Chem and I had trouble sleeping so Frank would stay up as long as I needed him to. We used to talk so much back then. We used to be so careless and young. "I just came in here because I can't seem to get enough of you during the day."

"Oh, well, that's cool, too," Frank laughs which causes my head to bounce on his shoulder. Despite it being painful, I don't say anything about it because I love Frank's laugh and he doesn't do it too often and this freely when his kids aren't around. He brings his arm up from around my waist and starts playing absentmindedly with my hair. It feels great and I feel my body start to relax, but I don't want to fall asleep in his room, not yet, but I know if I move to go back to my room then I won't be able to sleep at all, so I try to think of something to say to distract me from falling asleep right on his shoulder.

I look up at the side of his face from my perch and like the way he shivers when my breath hits his neck, but then something occurs to me, "Were you expecting me?"

I love the way that even with the dim bulb of the lamp being the only light in the room, I can still see Frank's blush as he nods. "Actually, I was kind of expecting you days ago. I could tell that this whole thing with Mikey and Sarah is making you lose sleep. Now, it's just kind of habit to leave my door open for you."