Frank was short. He was really short. I mean, even for a five year old, he was small. And the other kids at school certainly took advantage of his height. They'd always take his stuff, be it his lunch, his cool dinosaur, his hot wheels.
And Frank couldn't do anything about it because he was just the runt of the pack. If he told the teachers, he'd be a tattletale and he'd be in even more trouble with the other kids. So he'd learned to live with it. He just stopped bringing toys altogether, and he ate his lunch before lunchtime so there was nothing to steal.
After having been left alone for a few weeks, Frank decided to bring his old, beloved stuffed dog Sweet Pea to show his friend Ray. He thought that since the other kids hadn't bothered him for a while, they wouldn't bother him today. How wrong he was.
As soon as he walked into the building, one of the bigger kids, Bert McCracken, snatched the ragged little dog out of his arms, holding it above his head by the neck. He laughed as Frank tried to jump to get it.
"Jump, midget! Hahaha! Your stupid little dog is mine now!"
Frank was mad at first, but as his attempts became futile, he began to sniff. Angry tears formed and fell as he jumped one last time. His fingers grazed the scraggly, grey fur of the small dog, but they grabbed nothing.
"That's right, midget, cry. You're just a baby. A stupid little baby."
And with that, Bert McCracken shoved little Frankie to the ground and walked away with his dog. Frank sat on the ground for a second, sniffing and trying to compose himself. Then he got up, brushed himself off, and walked to his classroom.
Unbeknownst to Frank, however, was that a pair of stunning hazel eyes had watched the entire episode from behind the bathroom door. And the owner of that pair of eyes decided he liked the short kid, and that he was gonna help him get his little dog back.
*****************
While all of the other children played and laughed with each other, Frank opted for sitting in the corner alone. This was supposed to be when he was to show Sweet Pea to Ray, but he didn't have Sweet Pea, so he had nothing to do. He just sat there with his head on his knees, feeling sad.
That was, until he heard someone shouting. He looked over and saw Bert and some other kid yelling at each other. He recognized the other boy as one of the kids in the grade above him, but he didn't know his name. He didn't know what they were yelling about, but he hoped the other kid won. He had laid his head back on his knees again when he felt a gentle hand tap his shoulder. He looked up.
It was the kid who had been yelling at Bert. His cheek had a small cut and a bruise on it, but he was smiling warmly. He held his hand behind his back, and he bowed gracefully.
"I'm Gerard, and I think this belongs to you," he said as he moved his other arm out in front of him.
It was Sweet Pea!
Frank's face lit up, and he snatched the small dog. He held her to his chest, breathing in her familiar scent. He glanced back up at the boy. He was smiling even wider now, happy that he'd helped.
Frank took him by surprise by jumping up and wrapping his arms around the boy's --Gerard's-- neck. Gerard didn't hesitate to reciprocate, wrapping his arms around Frank's back. Frank pulled away, full of energy at the return of his little friend.
"Thankyou, thankyou, thankyou! Thanks Gerard! Thank you thank you! You're awesome! Can we be friends Gerard?! Ooh! Can we be best friends?! Can we, can we?!"
Frank was jumping around Gerard like a puppy now, and Gerard just giggled at his enthusiasm. He smiled and wrapped his arms around Frank's shoulders again, somehow managing to holding him still.
"Yes we can be friends, Frankie! We can be best friends forever! Is that okay?"
Frank hugged Gerard again, smiling into Gerard's shoulder.
"It's better than okay," Frank said, kissing Gerard on the cheek quickly. He giggled at Gerard's blush, and leaned back into him.
* *
"It's perfect," Frank repeated twenty years later, cherishing the embrace of his fiancé.
