Pyre (Frerard, Rikey, Ryden, Petekey)

4: Apparently Everyone In This Fic Is Gay Fucking Sue Me

As Ray was contemplating getting out of bed, and Mikey and Gerard hadn't even reached that step yet; unbeknownst to them, and they probably wouldn't have cared either way (except for maybe Gerard), Frank Iero was desperately wishing that he could crawl back into his own sheets, because this day had been a long one, and it didn't appear to be drawing to a close anytime soon.

It had been one emergency after the next at the small vet clinic which Frank not only worked at, but also owned, and as much as Frank loved his job, he let out a sigh of relief as he plastered the traditional closed sign in the window of his practice.

Frank adored animals, but the dalmatian that he had just treated - who was ironically named Princess, had been anything but a princess when it came to her yearly shots. Frank was still sore from being barreled over by the massive creature, and she wasn't the only misbehaving dog he had dealt with today, just the biggest.

Brewing himself a cup of coffee, Frank put his feet up on the rickety table, deciding to take a well-deserved break before he began cleaning up and preparing for tomorrow's patients. He had already sent everyone else home, because even though Frank had no life outside of his work, he knew his employees did, and he disliked keeping them past nightfall, especially since most of them walked, and the Jersey streets transformed into dangerous territory after dark.

Lately, the city had become even more perilous than usual; the police were convinced that some sick serial killer was on the loose because of the abnormal rise in the body count - that, or a strange animal. Numerous people had been found with vicious bite marks on their neck, inspiring the police to put a temporary curfew in effect, stating that all residents should be in their homes by no later than midnight given the fact that most of the murders had occurred around two in the morning. Frank was convinced it was some psycho with a vampire kink, he had seen something like that on Criminal Minds once, so it didn't seem too far-fetched.

The civilians were beginning to panic, some going so far as to take extended holidays, or moving away entirely, but not Frank, because Jersey was home to him, and he could never imagine living anywhere else, even though his parents had long since left for retirement in Florida, and although they had pleaded for him to come with them, Frank had refused.

Frank's adamant stance on not relocating to Florida may or may not have had something to do with his fear of alligators - or was it crocodiles - fuck, it didn't matter, they both had way too many teeth and lived in Florida, and with him being a vet, what if someone kept one as a pet, and he had to treat it or something? Also, Florida was hot as hell, or so Frank had heard, and his pale Jersey complexion would probably fry under the searing Florida sun.

But those were all just petty excuses, and Frank knew it; the truth was, he didn't want to leave Jersey, because it was full of memories, and he had friends here, and a comfortable life, so he didn't want to throw that all away to be near his parents, no matter how much he loved them - what twenty-seven year old would?

Probably the main reason that Frank didn't want to leave was his veterinary practice, which he had started from the ground up all by himself, and that also happened to be his greatest achievement to date. He had worked hard to build up a good rapport with his clients and patients; now his regulars were like family to him, and abandoning them all because of what may or may not be a serial killer was simply out of the question.

Being a veterinarian hadn't been Frank's first choice of career, not at all. Actually, Frank had never even intended to go to college; he was so sure that his high school band Pencey Prep was going to make it big that he hadn't considered furthering his education, but of course, they hadn't, and eventually, Frank had been forced to face the music - or lack thereof, and take a good hard look at his life.