Kissed All the Boys | Frerard + COMPLETE ! |

➵ SEVENTY NINE

sam

Donna sighed airily and said with a lighthearted tone, "Well, that turned out better than I thought it would." And though everyone was tense and weary, they somehow found a way to laugh with each other, Gerard giggling and resting his head on Frank's shoulder.

Melanie huffed, flustered and shaken-up, and said, "Sometimes I just hate him."

"Me, too. But I hope he comes around eventually," Donna said optimistically, pouring herself a glass of ice water and gulping it down. She sat with her family and kissed Gerard's forehead. "You don't know how proud I am of you. I love you so much. Don't ever forget that."

"Never."

The family sat back down and continued their dinner as if nothing had happened, though that's all any of them could think about, which made the small talk a nuisance. Melanie got to know Frank better, and as it turns out, he's extremely good with kids, making subtle hints that he wanted to have children of his own in the future. Gerard smiled from ear to ear, wishing their future would come faster.

But the meal had to come to an end eventually, and though Mel would've loved to stay longer, she had to go back home to Lana. She gave her sister and the boys hugs and kisses, promising to visit again soon. Frank told Marina bye with a small kiss on the cheek, which made her, along with Gerard, smile at him, eyes full of love. Melanie strapped Marina into her car seat and off they went, waving their last goodbyes before turning out of sight.

Donna closed the door after everyone was back inside, and stood among Gerard and Frank. "I am so glad that's finally over. Never again?"

"Never again," Gerard agreed with a chuckle. "But in a weird way, I'm glad it happened and went the way it did."

"Why do you say that, honey? Bert was awful to you."

"Because, Mom, that was only one person. How do you think other people along the road will react? This prepared me for the future, and now I know that I'm strong enough to take it."

"Oh, baby, I know you're strong enough. I'm so proud." She kissed his forehead and tousled his hair. Frank could be seen stifling a laugh from the corner of his eye.

"Well! Now that that's over with, why don't I start cleaning up..." Donna said and began to clear off the table and load the sink with water and dishes. Gerard and Frank instinctively pitched in, but as soon as she took notice, she exclaimed, "No, no, no. I got this. Go on, boys, get!" She shooed them out with a good willed grin.

They shook their heads, but eventually took themselves to Gerard's room. Once they were both inside, Frank shut the door and looked at his boyfriend seriously.

"You kicked ass in there, Gee. But it hurt like hell seeing you be treated like that. No one deserves that under any circumstance. And I just – "

Gerard held his hand up to halt Frank's speech and said whilst shaking his head, "It's okay. Can we just drop it? It wasn't that big of a deal."

"What? Yes it was, babe. If that would've been me, I would've started bawling and I don't know what else. But you? You just gave it right back to him. Gee, you...you took that like a man."

He was taken back at first, the words unexpected, but then his mouth gaped into a teethy smile and he grabbed Frank, pulling him into his arms. "You really think so? You really think that I'm a man?" Gerard's words were trembling with emotion, as were his eyes filling with tears.

"Yes, Gee. You always have been."