Hidden From Reality

23

Frank

I squeezed into the ride, barely fitting in next to Gerard.

"Ugh, why do they make the seats so close."

"It is a love ride, Frank." He pointed to Mikey and Pete sitting in the raft ahead of us. They were also squished together in an equally uncomfortable close seating arrangement. I laced fingers with Gerard as the ride lurched to life. We had convinced Mikey and Pete to come with us on some kind of "Tunnel Of Love" thing. It was also a water ride, so the rafts would bump against the walls, along with each other. Water began to collect in the bottom of the raft from the sprinklers in the roof. We emerged from the other side of the ride, still splashing each other with water out of the bottom of the raft. After we slowly climbed out of our raft, Mikey walked over and began a futile attempt to fix Gerard's hair. I had noticed that he had been holding hands with Pete just as Gerard and I had exited the ride. I laughed as Gerard shook out his hair, ruining all of Mikey's hard work. We walked around the fair for a while before coming to a stop in front of the ferris wheel. Gerard and I got into one of the gondolas and the ride attendee closed the door after we were settled. The cabin lurched as the wheel spun to let on the next couple, which happened to be Mikey and Pete. We waved down at them and dissolved into laughter. After a couple of minutes, the ride officially started. Gerard leaned against my shoulder and smiled up at me.

"So, are you enjoying yourself, Frank?"

"Of course. I'm getting to hang out with you. I couldn't be happier." He snuggled further into my chest and I wrapped my arm around him.

"Hey, are you okay? Like, you're feeling alright?"

"Yeah, just a little tired."

"Well then, we should probably go home after this. I would hate for you to get sick again."

"I'll be fine."

"You sure?"

"Of course." The ride slowed to a stop, ending with Gerard and I at the top of the wheel. I looked back down at him, and realized that he looked like he wanted to tell me something.

"Do you want to tell me something?"

He looked up at me with those gorgeous, hazel eyes. They reflected the light of the fireworks that had just gone off, revealing little flecks of gold mixed in with the green.

"Are you really okay with me being a werewolf?"

The ride lurched once more before coming to another stop.

"Of course I am. Why would you be worried about that?"

"I don't know. It just seems sometimes like I scare you. Like I really am a monster."

"Who ever told you you were a monster? You're so far from that."

"My mom always said it. After Dad left, she made sure I felt like a monster. And that I took the blame. Getting beat by your drunk parent is never fun."

"I'm sorry, Gerard. I'll never let anything like that happen again. I love you, past and all."

"But how? I mean, I'm just me. A monster."

"You're not a monster. You're my boyfriend. I love you for you, not your scars. I'll tell you as many times as you need to hear it." Gerard snuggled into my chest as the ride began to move again.

"You're sure?"

"One-hundred percent."